Love Attack!
by swirlheart
Summary: A zanpakuto that can make people fall in love with each other? Is there such a thing? Or could it be an evil trick cloaked in the form of Cupid’s arrow? The Soul Society is about to find out the hard way. Yaoi later on, not for keeps. You'll see. R&R plz!
1. Chapter 1

I don't own Bleach! Just a fanfic!

****

Chapter 1:

"Oh, Captain! Captain, hi!" Rangiku practically flung herself upon his desk.

Hitsugaya looked up from his desk, very annoyed. He growled back low and deep in his throat. "What?"

"So…" She rested her large chest on his desk and leaned into his face. "How did it go?"

He pulled some papers out from under her large breasts with disgust. "How did what go?"

"The meeting, silly!" she cried out in that high famine voice he hated so much. "The Captain's Meeting! You know, the important meeting all the captains have when something really big is going on. You know-"

"I know what you mean, Matsumoto."

"So? Tell me, tell me!"

Hitsugaya glared at her. "It's a private meeting for a reason. You are not meant to know."

She shrank away disappointed. "Oh… I was just curious."

Hitsugaya sat back in his chair with a huge frustrated sigh. "The meeting was about the possibility of one of the 13 Squads getting a new captain."

"They're replacing people?"

"No." Hitsugaya threw his pen onto a stack of papers. "You know how three captains have betrayed us and left, right?"

"Uh-huh."

"Well, the Head Captain said that we couldn't let that go on for much longer. So he managed to find someone who could take the missing captain's place. They're going to become the new captain of one of the squads: 3, 5 or 9."

"But, Captain, that's not how we do things around here. A new Captain can't be out of the blue like that. Are you sure he-"

"Yes. Head Captain Yamamoto-Genryusai said it himself at the meeting. He admitted that it was against regulations, especially considering the fact that this person isn't even a Soul Reaper."

"What?!" Rangiku all but screamed. "Then how in the world would-"

"Matsumoto!" His shout made her stop on the spot. "Now… He told us that he is only allowing this because she is very powerful and, even though she is not a Soul Reaper, she has already achieved bankai."

"She?"

"Oh, yes. It is a woman."

"And she has bankai?"

"Yes." Hitsugaya frowned harder and stared at the corner of his desk. "But I still don't trust her."

"Have you even meet her yet?"

"I… No, I haven't. But that's my point. What do we really know about her? She just shows up out of the blue, has no training, has never been a Soul Reaper, never been to the academy, and yet is allowed to become a captain just like that? I just can't trust a person like that. We know nothing about her. She's just a nomad with no home, no money and a zanpakuto which is probably very unstable. I can't believe that she's going to become a captain of one of three squads."

"But if the Head Captain requested it, then he must trust her, or at the very least knows what she's capable of."

"I just don't want other repeat of the whole Aizen incident. We've had enough traitors."

~*~*~

"Did you hear?"

"Hear what?"

"You mean you don't know?"

"How could I? I was sleeping!"

"Ikkaku, you sleep way too much…"

"Shut up!" Ikkaku balanced his sword on his shoulders and walked down the hall with Yumichika at his side. Some news was buzzing around the Soul Society but few knew what was actually going.

"One of the three squads is going to get a new captain!" Yumichika burst out.

"Eh?" Ikkaku cleaned out his ear with his pinky. "Don't be ridiculous. It doesn't happen just like that. You're lying."

"Am not! It's true! That's what the meeting was about! Squad 3, 5 or 9 is getting a new captain."

"No way."

"Yes, way!"

"Listen, man." Ikkaku took Yumichika by the arm and pulled him closer, draping his muscular arm over his shoulder. "There is no way in hell that's gonna happen anytime soon. And besides, I'd like to see the ugly bastard that tries to take on one of those jobs those asses left behind."

"We will prepare a room for you as soon as possible. Please take a tour of the Seireitei if you wish."

"Thank you. You have been very accommodating."

"Not at all. Right this way, please."

"Thank you very much."

Ikkaku and Yumichika stopped. They didn't recognize that voice. But it sounded suspiciously like a woman's. They watched as the door to the left of them opened and revealed a sight they had never seen before.

She was beautiful. Long blue and silver hair, long beautifully sculpted legs, flawless skin and big emerald eyes framed by long dark lashes. Whoever she was, she wasn't a Soul Reaper. She wore a short colorful kimono which hugged her hourglass figure in a most perfect way. She rolled up one of her sleeves to rub her forearm for a moment, showing off some skin that tantalized her secret audience in a most alluring way. She ran her slender fingers through her long blue and silver locks, as if teasing them.

She turned with a spin and spotted the two men gawking at her off to the side. "Oh. Hello there. I didn't see you."

Like hell she didn't.

Yumichika eyed her from head to toe. As he studied her white high heeled sandals and long white legs, his tongue turned to sand in his mouth. Beautiful didn't even begin to describe her.

"Who do I have the pleasure of addressing?"

"Uh?" He flinched.

"Was I too formal?" She brushed off her kimono and gave her hair a flip. "Who are you two?"

Yumichika went into a panic. He couldn't remember how to introduce himself. And here he had thought that that sort of thing was ridiculous and didn't happen. But it was happening to him right now! He couldn't remember his own name! Seeing that she was growing impatient, he tried his best. "Ahem. I- I'm… Yumichik-ka!" He hated how his voice cracked before he could get it out. "My name is Yumichika."

It was a good recovery. She was smiling. "Pleasure to meet you." She reached to shake his hand.

But that's where he froze. This was physical contact! Gulping, he lifted his trembling hand up and spread his fingers out. She did all the real work. She's the one who took his hand and shook it up and down for him. Yumichika's face turned pink when he realized that he had given her a sweaty hand to shake. How embarrassing!

But she didn't seem to mind at all. She shook it with no problem whatsoever with a smile that made him all but melt. "I think I like you. You have wonderful hair."

He lifted his gaze up to her eyes. "Y- you do? I- I do?"

"Of course! You must take really good care of it. I never knew that a man could get his hair like that and maintain it. Does it take long?"

He smiled sheepishly. "Oh… a few minutes… an hour…"

She giggled.

He could feel his heart pumping fast now. He had gotten her to laugh. The one thing he had done right so far.

Then the woman turned her attention to the other man on the right. "And you are?"

Ikkaku seemed to be in some sort of trance-like state at the moment, with his mouth hanging wide open and eyes focused squarely on her. Yumichika had to nudge him to get him to wake up. He snapped back to himself and cleared his throat. "I- I'm Ikkaku." He thrust a hand towards her forcefully. Unintentionally, of course.

She chuckled softly and shook it. "Pleased to meet you. My name is Hanabi."

Though Yumichika had heard that name before a couple of times, he couldn't think of a more fitting and beautiful name for her. Just the sound of it, the way it fell from her lips was like a song. He wanted to say that, he really wanted to complement her name, but all that came out was a question. "So, what are you doing here, Hanabi?"

"Oh, I was brought here to take a look around. I am being considered for a spot as captain here by your Head Captain."

So she was the one that may end up joining the 13 Court Squad!

_I approve! Oh, sweet Heaven of Heavens, do I approve so very, very much! Yes, yes, yes! I want thins so bad! The most beautiful and radiant of all beauties working here side by side with me! Oh, happy day! Happy flippin' day to me! Yes! A thousand times, YES! _That's what Yumichika was shouting on the inside while jumping up and down like a maniac; but on the outside he simply said, "Oh, that's nice. Good luck to you."

She smiled. "You're sweet."

Yumichika's heart leapt into his throat. _She thinks I'm sweet!_ He nearly passed out right there.

"But I do have a problem." Her voice suddenly became very soft and sad. She put a finger to her chin thoughtfully. "I was asked to tour this place and see if I liked it, but I don't know where anything is. I might get lost. And the woman who showed me here left, she was so busy with other things. So now I don't have an escort. If only I could find someone to-"

"I'll do it!" both men shouted at one.

She clapped her hands together with glee. "Oh, how wonderful, volunteers! Please lead the way."

They each took an arm of hers, Ikkaku on the left, Yumichika on the right, and lead her down the hall like love-sick gentlemen.

~*~*~

"I still don't like her!"

"Captain, you haven't even met her yet! You can't make that call."

"I don't trust her. It doesn't make any sense at all to me. She shows up out of nowhere, has never been a student, never been to the academy, never was enlisted, never been a Soul Reaper, has had no training whatsoever… And yet she shows up out of the blue one day with not only a zanpakuto, but has achieved bankai as well and is asked by the Head Captain to join as the new captain for one of three squads? It just doesn't happen! I don't like it."

Rangiku scratched her head. "But the Head Captain is the one who recommended her in the first place so he must at least know who she is. He must know her."

Hitsugaya stopped suddenly in the middle of the hall and turned to face his lieutenant. "Look, Matsumoto. You're not going to change my mind. That's how I think and how I feel. I don't want another incident like the one we had with Aizen and Gin. I hated them from the start. I suspected them of betrayal, but no one would listen to me. And you know what? I turned out right! People dismiss my opinions because they think that I'm a child and don't know any better, but look what happened! Because of that, Hinamori got hurt! I won't have something like that happen again!"

"Captain…" Rangiku whispered softly. She had known that her captain felt strongly about that, but she had no idea how strongly. Clearly he was hurt by what happened as well but chose not to admit it. "But sir, you can't be that way about everyone. For all you know, she may turn out to be a nice person. She may be one of the bet captains we've ever had. You never know."

He turned away in a huff. "I still don't trust her."

"You haven't even met her," she sing-songed.

"Shut up."

"And over here we have another hallway."

Hitsugaya held up his hand signaling for Rangiku to stop and listen. Wasn't that Ikkaku's voice?

Sure enough, he turned out right again. Three people turned the corner and walked towards them. Ikkaku, Yumichika, and a woman he didn't recognize. The two seemed to be showing her around. Could she be the one?

Hitsugaya blocked their way and said, "Who are you?"

Yumichika frowned at the captain. "It's rude to ask for someone's name without introducing yourself first, you know."

"I wasn't asking you. Who is she?"

The woman smiled. "I'm Hanabi. And you are?"

"Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya."

"Pleasure to meet you, Captain Hitsugaya." She extended her hand to him, but he didn't take it.

Rangiku on the other hand jumped up with a lot of energy and introduced herself cheerfully. "My name is Rangiku Matsumoto. I'm Captain Hitsugaya's lieutenant. It's very nice to meet you! Are you the future captain?"

"Oh, I don't know about that. I'm just looking around today. I haven't decided anything yet."

"Oh, you should! We need more women around here! There are only, like, two female captains here! We can talk, do lunch! Do you like sake?"

"Matsumoto."

"Oh. Sorry, sir. Got too excited."

Hitsugaya gave her a little push to the side and stepped up to interrogate the woman. "I have a few questions to ask you. First of all, what's your background? Where do you come from? What of your family?"

She scratched the side of her neck. "Hmm… Well, first of all, I have no family. I grew up all alone, traveling from place to place. Which answers the next question: I have no home. I just travel and live in different places. Though, it would be nice to settle down and live in one place for longer than a couple of days. I suppose once I become a captain here, I can live in the Seireitei."

"_If_ you become a captain," he corrected. "Which brings me to my next question: Where did you learn bankai? And how in the world did you get a zanpakuto?"

"I kind of developed it. I was always aware of a power inside of me and one day, poof! I got this." She reached behind her back and held up a sword. The sheath was a dark pink color and the hilt had a flowery pattern on it and the tsuba was in the shape of a heart. It was certainly original to say the least.

But he was still very skeptical. How could a zanpakuto just appear out of nowhere like she was describing? It took him years at the academy and lots of training before he could get his and master it. Things like that didn't just happen. "So how did you get it again?"

"Like I said. I trained myself and one day I finally achieved it."

"With no outside help?"

"Well, if you mean if I had a sensei of some sort, then no. But I did spar with other people who were also looking to become stronger. Why?"

He wasn't convinced. He knew she couldn't be trusted. Enough said.

"Captain, don't be rude. She asked you a question." Rangiku gave him a little nudge to get him going.

He glared at her. "I have nothing to say."

"All I was asking was why all the questions?"

"My reasons are my own." He folded his arms and stalked to the other side of the hall.

Hanabi called out to him. "I'm sorry if I upset you in any way, Captain."

"Hmph."

Yumichika took hold of her hand and stroked it with his thumb. "He's so rude, isn't he? He should know better to talk to a woman properly. To treat them like the delicate flower that they are." He tried his best to woo her. He never had much practice in the act of winning a woman's affection, but this time he just had to get it right. He really felt a connection with her. So he gave her his best charming smile and said, "Shall we continue the tour?"

"I would love to. Although…" She pouted and gave her calf a rub. "We've been walking for so long, and I had no idea this place was so big… And in these heels, I'm afraid that I need to take a short rest for a little bit. I'm sorry. I hope you understand."

Hitsugaya rolled his eyes. _Oh, please. Only an idiot would fall for that_.

Ikkaku and Yumichika suddenly sprang into action and escorted her into the nearest room. "Right in here, princess! I don't know who's room this belongs to, but I'm sure they won't mind. We'll only be a minute. But take as long as you need!"

Rangiku clapped her hands together. "Oh, how sweet! Such gentlemen! How come they've never acted like that before?"

"Because they fell for the stupidest trick in the book. That's why."

"What are you talking about, sir?"

Hitsugaya pointed at the two helping the woman to sit down in a cushiony armchair. "That! Don't you see? It's all an act! And a poor one at that. She's playing them both for fools."

"What do you mean?"

"Come on, Matsumoto. Even you can't be that oblivious. 'Oh, thank you ever so much.' 'You're so sweet!' Who talks like that? It's all an act. She's playing the helpless princess card. She's playing them like a con-artist. The way she talks, acts. Come on. I knew I wouldn't like her."

"Oh, Captain..!" she cooed sweetly. "I had no idea you were like this. I think it's cute!"

"Cute?"

"Don't get me wrong. I didn't mean it in a bad way."

"Matsumoto, are you trying to tell me that you think that I don't like her because I've convinced myself not to?"

"Well…"

He turned his back to her. "Don't be ridiculous. I don't trust her because she's untrustworthy. Anyone who has to put on an act while introducing yourself to other people can't be good news."

"Captain, I think that you-"

"I don't want to hear it! Come on, we have work to do." He quickly stomped back towards the office. _I know she's up to something… But what?_

* * *

I'm building. Stay with me…

But I am warning you now. There will be future yaoi. (Yay!)


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

Throughout the day, Soul Reaper after Soul Reaper introduced themselves to Hanabi and earned a charming smile from the ravishing beauty. Of course, the women just wanted someone to talk to, but the men wanted to charm her into a date. Some men were more subtle than others. Others laid on the charm kissing her hand after their introduction while others just came right out and asked her out. So far, she had gotten two marriage proposals that afternoon and an office filled with gifts. Most of the men didn't leave her sight for a second, causing a huge traffic jam for anyone trying to get inside.

Most of the women were very friendly with her but a lot of them were also very jealous of her getting all the attention. All the men tripping over themselves just to talk to her was disgraceful in Soi Fon's opinion, but she was among the jealous ones. She wanted some attention, too.

But Hanabi was so incredibly beautiful, she didn't stand a chance. None of the women did. She was the center of attention now. Perhaps the whole thing would end in a few days. It was probably just the excitement of having a pretty woman around. The excitement would wear off eventually and everything would go back to normal. Hopefully…

Byakuya had no idea that the woman was even there. He had been busy working in his office all day and hadn't left. Word of her arrival hadn't reached him yet. That is, until Renji stopped by to tell him the news.

"Captain, do you have a minute?"

He grunted.

Renji entered the room. "Did you hear the news?"

"Which would be?"

"The woman, sir. Her name is Hanabi and she's arrived here not too long ago. She's so beautiful!"

"That's nice." Byakuya continued to work without looking up.

"Oh, you should see her, sir. She's stunning! All the men are after her, but she hasn't said 'yes' to anyone yet."

"Yes to what?"

Renji chuckled shyly. "Well… to either marriage or a date. But she claims to be single. Hard to believe that someone who looks like her would be."

"With her turning everyone down, you sound surprised."

There was truth to that. But Renji was still willing to claim her heart as his own. He found her so incredible. Just the thought of them sitting on a beach made his heart melt. He could picture it perfectly in his mind. The two of them holding hands, walking side by side, barefoot on the beach, waves lapping, the salty spray… How lovely. Then, under the moonlit night sky, they would turn to each other, their hands clasped together and they would lean in close. Her eyes would sparkle, reflecting his desire and she'd move in closer. And as the waves reseeded, she would look into his eyes and whisper…

"I said 'hey'!"

Renji blinked and his fantasy vanished. "Huh?!"

"I asked you a question. Why were you spacing out on me like that?"

"I- uh- I'm sorry, sir. You were saying?"

Byakuya, still annoyed, looked back to his papers. "I was asking you if that was where all my squad members were. All the men seem to have disappeared on me. Are they with that woman?"

"Her name is Hanabi and yes, they are."

Byakuya grunted again. "I see. I'll have a talk with them later. Right now, I need you to deliver this for me." He handed Renji a stack of papers.

"Yes, sir."

~*~*~

After several hours, Byakuya was finished filling out forms and got ready to get some dinner. He packed everything up and left his office. As he walked down the hall, he could pick up on the conversations of several men walking back to their rooms. All of their conversations were the same. They were all discussing the woman and how close they were to winning her over. Byakuya found it disgusting. How could they be focused on that and not their work? Where were their heads? How could they fuss over a woman so much?

As he made a turn, he could hear giggling from the next room. The women were talking over Hanabi as well. They were mostly discussing how much they wanted to be friends with her or how jealous they were that she was stealing all the men's attention away from them.

But as Byakuya passed a few more rooms, he finally came across her temporary office. It was closed most likely to keep the men out so that she could catch a break. But he wanted to see this beautiful woman for himself. He slid the door open.

At once, his nostrils were filled with the smell of flowery perfume and sweets. He looked around. The sofa against the wall was covered in flowers and gifts including a large white teddy bear with a pink ribbon around its neck. The desk in front of the window was covered with boxes of sweets of all kinds and yet more flowers. The men must have really gone all out to impress her. They were spoiling her. He crossed the room to investigate some of her gifts. He picked up one of the boxes and opened it. Inside was a silky dress perfect for a romantic dinner in a fancy restaurant. Another box contained a diamond necklace and pearl earrings. Another one had an emerald necklace to match her eyes. The men _really_ went all out.

"Do you like them?"

Byakuya turned around and saw the woman all the men were fussing about standing right behind him. She really was every bit as beautiful as they said she was. But he wasn't weak in the knees yet. "I wasn't spying on you, believe me. I was merely curious. I was wondering what all these gifts were for."

"I guess they want me to feel welcome."

"Or ask you out on a date," he suggested.

She smiled knowingly. Even she knew the real reason for all these gifts. "I'm Hanabi, by the way."

"I'm Captain Byakuya Kuchiki of Squad 6."

"Nice to meet you." Her smile was pure and lovely.

Byakuya gave a sideward glance back at the gift-covered couch and then back to her. "Tell me, what will you do with all these gifts?"

"It would be rude to send them back, so I'll keep them."

"But you are aware that most, if not all of these were tokens of the men's affections for you, right? Keeping them would only give them the wrong idea and you wouldn't want to lead them on, would you?"

"I assure you that my intentions are pure. Besides, I think it would be worse for them to have their hearts broken in such a way. Besides, I never said that I had no intention of dating anyone here. I just might if the right man came along and that could be anyone. I'll just have to look for him."

Byakuya didn't have anything to say to her that wouldn't come back to bite him in the face. She was good. He looked her up and down. She certainly was stunning. She had a wonderful figure and a lovely face. Those emerald eyes of hers were the thing that struck him the most. They were gorgeous. It was as if they came to life and grabbed his soul, drawing him in close. Perhaps there was some truth to that because he had indeed moved closer to her at that moment without realizing it.

"Captain Byakuya…"

"That's Captain Kuchiki, actually." He moved away slightly.

"I apologize." She wasn't very sorry, actually. She had intended to call him that and knew that she would in the future as well. "Captain, just how did you ever become a captain here?"

"My grandfather was also the captain and I was expected to follow in his footsteps."

"Which you did, I see."

"Yes." He studied her face closely. He was drawn to it somehow. She was stunningly beautiful. There was no mistake about that. Somehow, some way, her face reminded him of someone he knew. It was a long time ago. He remembered that look, that gaze, but from where and who? That gaze had a way of drawing him in and making everything go away. It was as if the room wasn't there anymore. Everything faded away, leaving only them alone together.

"Captain?"

He blinked and realized that he had gotten even closer to her again. He backed up. "Sorry."

"Don't be."

His face felt warm.

"So, do you like being a captain?"

He couldn't answer that. It was his duty and his job. It wasn't a matter of liking it. It was just something that he had to do.

"Are you alright, Captain?"

He lifted his gaze to her eyes. "Why do you ask?"

"Because you look warm." She reached up and put a hand to his forehead. "You're cheeks are pink, too."

Her cool hand felt so good on his head. Come to think of it, he did feel a little warm. Almost like he was…

Blushing!

He took a few steps back and gently removed her hand from his head. He turned away. Why was it that he found himself blushing in her presence?

"Did I do something?"

Oh, did she ever! He hadn't felt this way in a long time. This strange warmth in his chest, his blushing face, the way her eyes captured him… It was almost like…

KNOCK KNOCK

_Oh, thank God!_

He had never been so thankful to hear a knock on the door. Nemu opened the door and walked inside. "Pardon me, but I need to ask Hanabi something."

Hanabi turned to her. "Yes?"

"We haven't had the chance to prepare you a room to sleep in as of yet. Do you have a place to stay or would you prefer a temporary room to stay in?"

"I can sleep here tonight. I don't mind. I can move the stuff off the couch and sleep there. It's no problem."

For a moment, Byakuya almost opened his mouth to offer to take her in tonight, but stopped himself before he could get the chance. He couldn't allow himself to do that, even if it was nothing more than a kind gesture. Then again, it wasn't like he had no room for her in his manor. He had more than enough space to acomidate her. But he just couldn't bring himself to invite her over. At first he thought of how it would look to other people and that was his excuse for not doing it, but then there were other reasons that got in the way of him doing it. What those reasons were, even he didn't know. He just had a gut feeling not to do it.

"Captain."

"Yes?"

"I'll be resting here in this room tonight. So if you'll please allow me time to myself?"

"Ah, of course." He bid her a good night and left the room, but not before stealing one final peek at her.

~*~*~

What was it about her that made all the men go crazy? Was it her beauty? Her charm? The way she spoke? The way she dressed? Whatever the reason, Hitsugaya didn't like it. It was just another pretty face to lull everyone into a false sense of security. Just like Aizen, Hanabi was very charismatic. She could charm, or rather con everyone into doing whatever she wanted, and he hated that. Hitsugaya wasn't falling for it. He knew she was tricking everyone else and he wasn't going to fall of it himself. There was no way in hell he was falling for such a stupid trick like that. She was nothing more than a con-artist.

The gifts never stopped flowing into her room for a moment. Hour after hour, more gifts would find their way to her in all shapes and sizes. Her room was packed full of them. Hitsugaya narrowly avoided being bulldozed by a herd of Soul reapers carrying large bouquets of roses to her room. That was just about all he could take. Half of his own squad had been neglecting their duties just so that they could talk to her. He had to put a stop to it.

He marched down to her office and knocked on the door.

"It's open," she called from inside.

He opened the door and closed it behind himself. She was sitting behind her desk eating a chocholate covered strawberry. Even he had to admit that she looked kind of sensual eating those strawberries. She put one to her lips and bit down, showing off her white pearly teeth. There was a small crunch as she broke through the chacholate shell and the pink juice from the fruit ran down her chin and onto her pinky. Even the way she chewed was kind of sexy.

But he wasn't here to sightsee like the others. He was here on business. "I came to talk to you."

She lowered the half eaten strawberry and gave him her full attention. "Sure. What's up? Oh, can I get you anything?"

"I don't think so."

"I have plenty here. Would you care for some strawberries? Candy? Chocolate?"

"No thanks. I don't care for sweets."

"Are you sure? I have more here than I know what to do with. They just won't stop coming. I have about ten boxes of these amanatto."

Hitsugaya's ear perked up. "Amanatto?"

"Yeah. Do you like them?"

In truth, they were one of his favorites. His grandmother sent him boxes of them every now and again as a treat. He loved them. "I could take one of those off your hands if you wanted."

"Sure, here you go." She handed him one of the boxes wrapped with a shiny gold ribbon. "I hope you enjoy it."

He tucked it behind his back and onto a side table by the door. He had business to do and if he didn't take care of it now he may never get a chance to. "Anyway, I want to talk to you about something."

"Alright." She sat back, crossing her legs. "Go ahead."

"I-"

"Hello!" The two idiots were back. Yumichika and Ikkaku burst in through the door and over to her desk. "How is my angel doing today?"

"Excuse me!" Hitsugaya glared at them. "I was speaking to her."

"Take a number, kid," Ikkaku growled. "Let the men talk."

"What?!" Ikkaku had never been that disrespectful to him before.

"Kid?" Hanabi asked puzzled. "What kid?"

"Him." Ikkaku pointed to the young captain.

"Sure, he may be young, but I certainly don't think of him as a child. They wouldn't let a kid become a captain. Even if he was one, then to be a captain, he must be very skilled."

Hitsugaya's eyes lit up. Never- _Never_ had anyone said that about him before. She was the first person to ever acknowledge him as anything other than a child. She had actually treated him, spoken to him, spoken about him as an adult! He was actually treated just as any other captain would be. His heart skipped a beat. Maybe she wasn't so bad after all.

"Please allow me to finish with the Captain of Squad 10. I'll be more than happy to speak to the both of you later."

They both backed away disappointed.

Yumichika gave her puppy eyes. "Do you promise?"

"Of course."

"And don't forget about me!" Ikkaku spoke up. "I'll be talking with you, too, right?"

She ran her palm over his shiny head. "Now how can I say 'no' to a cute bald head like that?"

This was the only time Ikkaku didn't respond to being called bald. His cheeks only turned pink and chuckled giddily.

But now Yumichika was shocked. She liked bald guys? She couldn't say 'no' to a man with no hair? In his hast to please her, he grabbed his sword and a fistful of hair, ready to cut it all off. He shut his eyes and prepared to cut.

"But I absolutely love your friend's hair. It's so perfect."

At her words, Yumichika froze in place. "Eh?"

"Oh, yes! Don't you remember me telling you how much I love your hair. I meant every word of it. It's lovely."

Happy that he got to keep his perfect hair, Yumichika lowered his blade. "You're hair is lovely, too," he gushed.

"So sweet!" she cooed, pinching his cheek.

Yumichika's legs gave way and had to be carried out by Ikkaku.

Hanabi turned back to Hitsugaya. "Now, where were we?"

"Uh…" He tried to think. His mind had suddenly gone blank. If only those two fools hadn't come in when they did, he could have asked what he needed to ask. But now he couldn't even remember that! What had it been about? It was something important, he was sure of that. It had something to do with her, right?

Warm arms snacked around his shoulders and he looked up at the pair of emerald eyes. Hanabi was a little too close for comfort. And yet, he kind of liked having her warmth so closely pressed against him like this. She handed him the box he had set behind himself earlier. "Enjoy those amanatto, Captain."

The soft feminine tone of her voice didn't match the strength he felt resonate from her dainty palm on his shoulder. He didn't resist as she guided him towards the door, showing him out. Once in the hall, Hitsugaya turned in time to see her blow him a kiss and close the door.

Mind fogged up, Hitsugaya didn't have anything else to do but walk back to his office wondering what in the world happened to him.

* * *

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	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: **

Such grace, such poise, such beauty. She was so perfect in every way. A flawless angel- no, a goddess She was a goddess. Hanabi was so incredibly wonderful in every way. But he wasn't falling for her tricks. She may have fooled everyone else, but not him. Hitsugaya was no fool. The others may have been easily fooled, but not him.

Then why couldn't he take his eyes off of her? At first, he had convinced himself that he had been merely observing her to see if she was up to anything suspicious. But now instead of watching to see if she was trying anything funny, he was just watching her. He watched her write and observed how her soft, pink lips would part slightly as she concentrated. He watched her run her long slender fingers through her blue and silver hair. The way she smiled, the way she walked, the way she talked… He watched it all and loved it so much. She was so incredible to look at.

But he certainly wasn't falling for her like the others. There was no way that was happening to him. Not at all. But then why was it that every time he was around her, his mind would go blank? It was so very strange.

Not this time, though. He was going to have a talk with her without wavering. He would get his questions answered one way or another.

He knocked on her door and opened it. She was sitting on the couch with her legs crossed as if she had been expecting him. She greeted him with her usual smile and motioned for him to sit down next to her. He did, but kept his distance.

"I wanted to talk to you, Captain Hitsugaya."

He was surprised. She wanted to talk to him? That would make things a little easier of him. "What about?"

"You're a captain, correct? Tell me, what's it like being a captain?"

He couldn't answer that. He had never given it much thought before. It was hard work, but was that what she meant? Her question was vague.

"I'm expected to become the new captain of one of three squads. But I'm so nervous. I get to pick which one to join as the new captain."

"Wait a minute… You get to decide?"

"Yes. But I'm not sure which one I should go with. Perhaps you could tell me. Surely you know more about the squads than I do so you can help me out. Which one do you think I'm best suited for?"

That was a hard one. She got to pick which one? How strange… But wait! If she went with squad 3 or 9 then she would get stuck with either Kira or Hisagi as a lieutenant. But if she decided on Squad 5, then she would be with Momo. It would be nice for her to be with another girl, but Hitsugaya wanted to protect Momo and if this woman was indeed a traitor just like Aizen, then Momo would get hurt again. But if Hanabi went with one of the other squads then the men would be competing for her affection. He didn't want any competition. Wait a minute! Why was he thinking about competition between other men? And why did he think of them first and Momo second? That didn't mean anything, right?

"Captain?" Hanabi had gotten closer to him. "You seem to be thinking about something. Is there something wrong?"

"N- no." Hitsugaya looked away. Why was his face feeling so warm all of a sudden?

She placed a hand on his and he flinched. Her touch didn't hurt him in the slightest, but it took him by surprise. What was she going to do next? He was afraid to know.

"Captain, do I make you nervous?"

His voice was dead. He couldn't speak.

Her innocence now looked somewhat devious. It was almost like she was plotting something. But the gentle loving spark in her eyes suggested something different.

"Don't be scared."

"I- I'm n- not." The stutter in his voice made him sick. He never stuttered. Why was he so nervous? Why did she make him feel this way?

Hanabi had gotten closer to him. She gave his hand a squeeze. Her smile never left her face for a second. "Captain…"

He gulped. This was all so strange. He had seen this type of thing happen all the time, but he had never experienced it for himself before. What they were doing right now… this conversation, this setting… Like lovers do.

He didn't know if she had gotten closer to him or he to her, only that the space between them was gone. They were so close together. He looked deep into her emerald eyes, transfixed. _Those eyes_…

Instinctively, Hitsugaya leaned forward, lips puckered. He knew what to do. It was in his nature. He wasn't thinking logically anymore. He was acting on impulse. At this close proximity, they could only do one thing. He had to do it.

"Hanabi."

She looked up towards the door, moving away from him. Hitsugaya kept going and his lips crashed into the couch cushion.

"We would like to speak to you."

"Sure thing." She looked back at Hitsugaya on the couch. "Excuse me for a moment."

"S- sure…" He watched her get up and leave the room. What was this odd feeling that had come over him so suddenly? His chest felt warm and light. His face was red and felt hot. Was he blushing? What in the world happened to him?

There was another voice coming from the hall and he turned. "Huh?"

"Are you ok, Captain?" It was Kira. Appearently he had been looking for Hanabi but just missed her.

Hitsugaya hoped that his face was no longer blushing. "Why do you ask?"

He pointed out the window. "Because of that."

The white-haired Soul Reaper turned and saw fresh snowflakes falling from the sky outside the window. Was he making it snow? But that only happened when he got really emotional about something or if he-

Got emotional? Wait a minute! Did that mean what he thought it meant? Emotional meaning..?

_Oh, crap!_

~*~*~

For the first time in his life, Byakuya found himself pacing his room, wearing a groove in the floor. Why couldn't he get her out of his mind? There was just something about her that drew him to her like a magnet. And her eyes… like emerald flame. Her lips… soft and shiny like pink silk. And her voice was like the tinkling of bells. She glowed like an angel. She had this radiance that reminded him of someone. The feeling he got from her was so familiar.

It reminded him of… Hisana.

His wife! His beloved deceased wife. Why did she remind him of her? They looked nothing alike! She was short and Hanabi was tall. Her hair was short, hers was long and flowing. Their eyes didn't match, their voices didn't match, nothing was the same.

Except for the feeling he got from her. It was the same. The same pull, the same longing. It was the same attraction. It was the same feeling of being in love.

No, that couldn't be! He had promised himself that Hisana would be his first and his last. He could never- _would_ never love another the way he did her. The noble Kuchiki family discouraged their marriage, but they made it work. After all that convincing and all the troubles they had gone through to be named a couple, how could he just cast her memory aside like it meant nothing? She had meant everything to him. He still loved her to this day. He had respected her wishes and protected Rukia and took her in as his sister. Compared to all that, Hanabi meant nothing to him.

Byakuya sat down in a chair and rubbed the back of his neck. This was such a pain. He had to figure this out before things got out of hand. Maybe if he spoke to her, saw her again, he could convince himself that she would never ever mean anything to him. But that would require seeing her again, something he wanted nothing to do with. What a huge pain in the neck!

~*~*~

"Captain, open the door!"

Startled, Ukitake choked on his tea and spat it out at the window. As he coughed, the door to his office swung open.

"Captain, I have a question for you." It was Hisagi.

Ukitake recovered and set his cup down before another accident could happen. "What is it?"

He opened his mouth but closed it again. He was nervous about something. "Uh… I want to ask you something."

"I gathered that. What is it?"

Hisagi raised his eyes to him before looking away again. "Don't laugh."

"I'll try not to. But whatever it is, I'm sure I won't laugh. Now tell me what it is."

He gulped. "What… do you know about… women?"

That was a surprising question, especially coming from the man who normally got a lot of women checking him out. "Say what?"

Hisagi's face was red. "What do you know about women? How do you win them over?"

Ukitake just stared at him. "What's this about?"

Hisagi clenched his kimono tightly in a Kira-like fashion. "See, I… like this girl… and…"

"Let me guess. Hanabi, right?"

He looked up, wide-eyed. "H- how did you know?"

"Everyone likes her. She's very pretty."

"She's drop-dead gorgeous!" he all but screamed.

Ukitake blinked. "Uh, right. Well… My advice to you would be to perhaps think this through a little more carefully."

"By that you mean..?"

"I mean that she has hundreds of men swarming around her everyday. Perhaps if you get her alone somewhere, you could tell her how you feel. Maybe even arrange something."

Hisagi chewed on the inside of his cheek. "Hm… But what about flowers and candy? Don't girls like that sort of thing?"

Ukitake gave a weak chuckle. "I think just about every other man has already thought of that. She's been receiving those kinds of gifts all day from all sorts of different men. I think she's sick of those things by now. It's too predictable. Those men have no imagination."

Hisagi gave a nervous chuckle, knowing that he himself had delivered a couple dozen roses and ten boxes of chocolates to her not too long ago. Maybe he should consider thinking outside the box. "Then what would you suggest?"

Ukitake sat back and thought. "Well… Personally, if I want to win over a woman, I would give her something a bit more personal. Maybe even cook her dinner or something."

"Girls like that stuff?"

He laughed. "Of course! Women love a man who can cook. It means less for them to do and whatnot. Sure, they like that sort of thing."

Now Hisagi had so many good ideas popping into his head. "Oh! What if I were to take her out shopping?"

"If you want to empty your wallet in a hurry, then be my guest."

This was a goldmine! "What else you got?"

Unbeknownst to them, several other men were lurking outside the office, eavesdropping to get information for themselves. Ukitake had some really good ideas.

~*~*~

Byakuya returned to his office early the next morning to find Renji sitting on the floor with _his_ calligraphy kit. "What in God's name are you doing?"

"Writing a poem," he answered simply, oblivious to any malice in his captain's tone. "What rhymes with 'love'? Glove, shove, above, dove..?"

"Give me those!" Byakuya snatched up the calligraphy brush and paper. "You have no right pawing through my personal belongings like that! What's the matter with you?"

"I'm in love!"

"Yeah, you and just about every other man in the Soul Society. We're never going to get anything done at this rate if this continues."

"No, no, Captain!" Renji dashed in front of him with a huge smile. "I mean it! I'm really in love with her! Honest and truly in love with her! I really care about her! All those others don't know the meaning of love, not true love anyway. All they have are crushes. She's so far out of their league. She has a better chance with me!"

"Don't you mean it the other way around, that _you_ have a better chance with _her_?"

Renji stared blankly at him. "That's not the point."

Byakuya rolled his eyes. "Out of my way, I have work to do."

"Then help me write her something!" Renji slapped a stack of blank papers on his desk. "Please! I can't write poetry! Help!"

Byakuya looked from the papers to his lieutenant. "And what makes you think that I would be any good at writing poems?"

Renji backed up, unsure of how he would react to what he was going to say next. "Because you look like that type of guy."

He just stared at him with his usual poker face.

"Sorry?"

He still stared at him.

Renji backed out of the room. "I'll just be over here. Uh… I'll just leave you to… Love your hair- Bye!" He moved so fast, not even Soi Fon could keep up with him.

Byakuya shrugged and looked down at his papers. "I actually wasn't mad."

~*~*~

"How does this sound?" Ikkaku cleared his throat and recited from a little black book. "Ahem. If I could rearrange the alphabet, I would put 'u' next to 'I'. What do you think?"

Yumichika made gagging noises from the other side of the room.

"Hey, I'm working on it!"

He gave a roll of his eyes. "Please. Those cheesy pick-up lines wouldn't catch you a cold. You'd have a better chance of getting a wild boar to date you."

Ikkaku threw the book at his head. "Shut up! She said that she couldn't say 'no' to a bald head!"

"True, but she also said that she loved my head of flawless hair." Yumichika smugly ran a hand over said locks with a smirk. "That means I outrank you. I'll have a better chance of dating her than you. Face facts, my friend."

"That doesn't prove anything!"

Yumichika reached down and picked up the book. "Where did you get this sorry pick-up line book anyway? From Shunsui ?"

He snatched it back. "What do you care?"

Yumichika smiled again with the same smug grin as before. "You realize, of course, that she'll never fall for those lame pick-ups, don't you?"

Ikkaku shot him a look. "Oh, yeah, big shot? Then how would you do it?"

"Simple. First, I would take her hands in mine like so." He wrapped his hands around Ikkaku's. "Next, I would get up real close to her lovely face and speak from the heart."

Ikkaku gave him a blank stare. "Which would be..?"

"Have you no soul, Ikkaku?" He sighed. "Alright. Well, what I would do is tell her how I felt about her. How happy she makes me and brightens my days. It should be very poetic. That's sure to win her heart. You simply move in close, give her a warm smile like so and say, 'darling, I'm here for you. I will never let you go. So long as you take my hand in yours, I will never leave your side, my beautiful angel of absolute beauty. The stars have aligned just for us on this most joyous of days to signify our love. Now come here and kiss me with your luscious lips'."

Murmuring from the door broke their role-play and turned. Half a dozen Soul Reapers, including Kenpachi were standing in the doorway watching them. Yumichika dropped Ikkaku's hands and backed away. Ikkaku growled and wiped his hands off on his pants. "This isn't what it looks like!"

"That's what they all say."

"What you do in your free time is none of our business."

"You're right, it's not, now get the hell out!" Ikkaku chased after them with his sword.

Kenpachi stood back and watched. "I'm not even going to ask."

"Run, Baldy, run!" the pink-haired girl cheered from his shoulder.

Yumichika crumpled to the floor in a sad heap. "How embarrassing..!"

* * *

Please review! ^-^


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

After much soul-searching, Byakuya had made up his mind. He was going to see her. But only to confirm that there was nothing going on between them and set aside any belief that they would have a future together. That was never going to happen. But he couldn't go to her empty-handed. He had to bring her something.

"Captain!"

Before he could do anything, Renji was back. "What is it now?"

Breathlessly, he asked, "Please help me with this! I have to give her this poem, but it's no good! Fix it for me, would you?"

"Did you run all the way here?"

"That's not the point! Please!" He thrust the pen and paper towards him.

"I'm not doing the work for you."

"Then I'll take notes!" He put his pen to the paper, ready. "Shoot!"

Caught off guard, Byakuya stuttered. "Uh… b- but I couldn't…"

"Make something up! I don't care as long as it's good! Please!"

He sighed heavily. "Fine."

Renji ginned like an idiot and waited, pen to the paper.

"Um…" Byakuya searched for words. "My heart beats to a love so pure, a beat as soft and undying as my feelings for you. My eternal love forever flourishes, bathed in the glow of your brilliant light, it guides my weary soul to your beautiful harbor. Forever be my shining star to lead me home. Be my goddess of goddesses. By my one, my love, my all."

Renji nodded, scribbling furiously on the paper. "Yeah… Uh-huh… Good! Wow, how did you come up with that so fast? That was brilliant!"

He looked away, embarrassed. He read a lot of literature, even in his young age, so he must have picked it up somewhere along those lines. Or maybe it was just a natural talent or gift. Maybe this was why he was so popular with the ladies.

Down the hall, Hitsugaya was conducting some research of his own and it didn't involve pick-up lines. There was something going on with Hanabi and he didn't like it. The way he felt when he was around her was, in his opinion, unnatural. She must have been doing something behind his back. Not only that, but he also doubted that anyone could be that beautiful in real life. He still didn't trust her, no matter how nice she appeared to be. He took to stalking her around every corner and spied on her whenever he had a spare moment.

Currently, he was hiding around the corner just outside her office. He was listening for anything suspicious and waiting for her to come out doing something incriminating. So far, there was no such luck. Crouching in this position for so long was causing his legs to fall asleep. But he was determined not to leave this spot until something happened.

His head snapped up when he heard footsteps. Thinking it was Hanabi, he jumped to his feet, startling Byakuya. "Oh, it's just you."

Byakuya frowned. "That's rather rude."

"Sorry. What are you doing here?"

"I… was just passing by…"

Hitsugaya didn't believe him. "What's behind your back?"

Byakuya shifted something that crinkled further behind him. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Are those flowers?!"

"No!"

Hitsugaya made a grab for his sleeve, but Byakuya stepped away. But Hitsugaya saw all he needed to see in just that one movement. He caught a glimpse of rose petals. "I can't believe you!"

"It's not what you think!"

"You, too?! As if it weren't bad enough with all the other men falling for her, now you?!"

"I assure you that I am not infatuated with her in the slightest."

"Then what are the roses for?"

He sighed, caught. He pulled the roses out from behind his back. There was no longer a reason to keep them hidden. But his bouquet was certainly more original than the other roses Hanabi had received. This one was made up of blue roses, grabbing the eyes like sapphire stones. They were beautiful.

"The only reason I have these is so I have an excuse to talk to her."

"Why can't you just walk in there like a normal man and talk to her empty-handed?"

That he couldn't answer. He swallowed and hid his chest with the arrangment of blue flowers.

"I see…"

Now it was Byakuya's turn to ask Hitsugaya something. "Then what are you doing here?"

Hitsugaya flinched. "I… Uh…"

"I see."

"No! It's not that! It's just that I don't think that she's what she claims to be! I think that she-"

"Captain?"

The door to his right opened and Hanabi was suddenly standing beside him. He froze like a deer caught in headlights.

"Did you want something?"

He couldn't wrap his head around her question. His chest went numb and it was hard to breathe. "Uh…"

Byakuya answered for him. "He was just passing by. I wanted to speak to you."

"Oh?" She gave him an innocent look, as if she didn't have a clue what he was talking about. "Then please come in."

On her command, Byakuya entered her room. Her room was still packed with gifts and flowers, some old, some new. He handed her the blue roses. "These are for you."

"Oh, thank you so much! I haven't gotten blue roses, yet." She held them to her face and sniffed them.

As he prepared to speak, Byakuya's gaze was caught by the image of her face hidden behind the fresh blue roses, allowing only her eyes to be shown. She fanned her long dark lashes at him suggestivly. He blinked and looked away. His face was growing warm again. "I wanted to speak with you."

"Yes?" she drawled.

He lost his words. Why did she have to do that? She made it so hard to talk to her.

"Please have a seat, Byakuya."

"That's Captain…" He trailed off as she took him by the hand and led him over to the couch. She forced him into the seat and sat down beside him.

"What did you want to talk about?" She laid her hands atop his.

Words wouldn't come.

She pulled his hand up onto her lap and gave it a stroke with her thumb. "Talk to me."

His hand was on her lap. His hand was touching her thigh! He snatched his hand back with lightning speed. This wasn't working out the way he had hoped. "Please stop that!"

"Stop what?"

Was she trying to seduce him? All the signs pointed to it.

Byakuya slid to the other side of the couch away from her.

Hanabi slid after him.

He slid further away until he was backed up against the arm of the couch.

She slid even closer until they were only inches apart.

"St- stay back…" he said as if she were infected with some sort of fatal disease.

"What?" she giggled and moved even closer to him. Hanabi placed her hands on his knees in order to lean into his face.

He worked up enough courage to put up a fight. "Now wait just a minute!" He took her hands in his, keeping them at bay. "I'll have you know that I do have a lover."

"Oh?"

"Yes. I happen to have a wife."

Even with that being said, she didn't back down. "Really? Can I meet her?"

"Uh… Well, the thing is… she's… passed away."

"I see. I'm sorry to hear that."

He didn't answer her.

"I can tell you must have really loved her. I respect that."

Her words didn't match her behavior. She was still practically sitting in his lap.

"I _do_ love her. Her name was Hisana."

"Hm. That's pretty."

He nodded. He had nearly forgotten that her hands were still wrapped by his. He only remembered this when he felt her give them a gentle squeeze. "I had a wife and I still am in love with her. I'm sorry but I cannot be with you, so you may as well find someone else."

She had gotten closer. He could see her eyes so clearly now. They were like emerald gemstones. They sparkled perfectly, reflecting his stunned features.

This feeling… It was a strong new feeling; an unexplainable feeling, that kept his eyes from straying from hers. He could feel this maddening desire swell through him, willing him on. He moved forward, closing the gap. He felt so close to her, like he was being drawn in by her eyes. Those big, lovely eyes, as sure and unwavering as an animal's.

He forced himself to speak. "I… I can't… I… can't…"

As hard as he tried, he just couldn't stop himself from getting even closer. He could feel her breath on his lips, they were so close.

"I can't be with you… I just can't. I can't, no matter how much you… No matter how… beautiful you are. Or how brightly your eyes glow or… God, you're stunning."

Her smile was a proud and satisfied one. And soon those smiling lips had puckered and pressed against his.

Somehow, she made him feel so alive. More alive than he had been in a long, long time. He had forgotten everything, even his wife's name as he gave in. The sleeping beast within him awoke and urged him onward.

Faithful to his instincts, Byakuya excepted her kiss.

It was the most amazing feeling he had ever had. The greatest experience in this or any world! The moment their lips met, his senses all blended together and his world was shook, making him feel more alive than he had ever felt in his life.

But it wasn't enough. He had a beast inside of him just waiting to get out. It had been so long since it had been released. In fact, he had never loosened its chain before even when it was out of the gate. It was starved for this. Byakuya loosened its chain and the beast took over.

He gently pushed her over backwards and pressed her into the couch. He knelt on top of her and deepened the kiss. He ran his fingers through her long flowing silver and blue hair. She moaned into the kiss, making him want more. To please him, Hanabi brought one leg up to his shoulder and allowed him to stroke it as he kissed her. He moaned into her open mouth and stuck his tongue in and explored her mouth like a curious animal.

The only thing that broke their moment of passison was a scream from the door.

They both sprang apart and looked up.

Hitsugaya was standing in the doorway, a petrified look plastered on his pale face. Was he standing there the whole time? How much did he see?

Byakuya came back to his senses and gasped out loud. What had he done?! "Hitsugaya! I- it's not what you think! I swear we were- we were just-"

Hitsugaya turned and bolted from sight.

Uncler of his intentions, Byakuay could only fear the worst. His good noble name was ruined.

"Hitsugaya, wait! Come back!" He took off after the younger captain.

Hanabi was left alone on the couch in her heavily decorated room. She sat back on the couch, licking her lips. She smiled to herself and looked up at the ceiling. "That worked out nicely."

~*~*~

Ever since the little 'mishap', Hitsugaya refused to talk to Byakuya. He kept to himself and wouldn't so much as give him the time of day. It wasn't so much embarrassing for Byakuya as much as it was crushing. The way he had acted was so unlike him. He had turned into something he wasn't. Where was his pride? His nobility? His commen sense? He shouldn't have acted that way. But there was something about her that forced him to do so. It was more than an impulse. Much more. It was strong. Stronger than his own will.

He had to set things right. He returned to her room later that evening and showed himself inside. "I have to speak to you."

She grinned happily. "Back for more?"

"Absolutly not," he growled. "This is about something more."

"Ok."

He found the right words and spoke without looking her in the eye. He just couldn't bring himself to look upon her. "What happened earlier was a mistake."

"Really?" She shifted her weight to one foot. "You sure seemed to have enjoyed it."

"It shouldn't have happened. It was a mistake. Something came over me and it was wrong. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry. If it wasn't what you wanted, then you wouldn't have done it at all."

"What?" Did she have the gall to say that?

"Come on," she laughed. "Can you honestly look me in the eye and tell me that you haven't desired something from me at all? You don't have any feelings for me at all? And that you didn't enjoy that kiss in the slightest?"

In truth, he did. That was the greatest experience of his life. That kiss was amazing and he never wanted their lips to part. He wanted to be locked in a neverending kiss with her forever. She tasted so good.

He shook his head and backed away. "No! I don't feel that way at all!" he lied. "I can never have feelings for you."

"Is that your truth or your wish?" Her smile suddenly looked less innocent than her words. "Are you convincing yourself of this or are you… Is it that you are refusing to acknowlage your true feelings?"

He stood his ground. She could read him like a book.

She stepped up close to him and ran her fingers over his ribs, counting. "You're a bad liar, Byakuya."

Her voice was beautiful as well as chilling. It sent shivers up his spine.

"It- it was a mistake…" Words were failing him. Each word had to be dug up one by one and polished off before they could reach his mouth. "I could never… It wasn't my intention to…"

She was no longer listening to him. She treated his words like white noise. Hanabi flatened her hand on his chest and rubbed around his heart. She lifted her eyes to his, her scarlet lips forming a smile which traveled up her waxen cheeks.

"This has caused me nothing but trouble. Hitsugaya saw us… It's not that I don't trust him to keep his mouth shut, but he… It's…"

Hanabi treated his words like a warm spring breeze. She giggled.

"I couldn't…"

"Yeah..?" she whispered suggestively into his ear.

He was losing himself again. She was getting to him again. This was just like before. Her charm made it so hard to decline any request. As she wrapped her arms around his back, he felt a pleasant warmth spread throughout his body. His heat beat in a steady but fast rhythm. He hadn't felt this way since his wife was at his side. But this was stronger still. This obession and longing. A bruning passion and flaming desire.

Without meaning to, he had fallen for her. Byakuya was in love.

"I couldn't… love anyone more than I do you."

Her smile spread and she rested her head on his chest. "I was hoping you'd say that."

He snaked his arms around her body in a hug and rested his chin on the top of her head. If only they could stay like this forever. That would suit him just fine.

* * *

You know she's up to something. But what?!

Please review! ^-^


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

The women's association meeting addressed nothing more than what to do with Hanabi.

"She's a distraction! She has no right!" Nanao barked.

"I know!" Soi Fon added bitterly. "She's distracting all the men from their duties. They're not getting anything done! I have to pry my men away from her with a crowbar!"

Rangiku shrugged. "I don't think she's that bad, but I have to admit that it is a pain not getting any attention from the men. I miss it!"

Nanao glared at her. "That's not the point! The fact of the matter is that she's a distraction! No one's doing any work around here!"

"But she's here on the Head Captain's request so there must be something to her."

"So far all I'm seeing is men tripping over themselves to kiss the ground she walked on." Nanao folded her arms in disgust.

Isane frowned sadly. "It is a problem… But what if it's just a fad? I mean, men are pretty fickle. One day they like one woman and the next they like another."

"It's true," Rangiku nodded. "The second they see a hot woman they go after her. But if another hot one walks by they forget all about her and go after the other one. I'm sure in a few days the excitement will wear off and everything will go back to normal."

The door slid open and Rukia came running into the room looking like she had just seen a ghost.

"What's the matter?"

"My brother's dating Hanabi!"

The women gasped.

"What?"

"How can that be?"

"I know! I thought he would never love another after… well, you know."

Rukia collapsed in a chair. "But he is! He's bringing her flowers and everything!"

"But that doesn't mean that they're dating."

She wailed, "But he's fallen for her! You should see him! He's writing her poems and planning romantic dinners! I even walked in on him when he was practicing his make-out face in the mirror."

Rangiku's face lit up with delight. "Really?" She went to grab her camera. "Is he still doing it?"

"How should I know?"

Nanao checked something off on her clipboard. "That's one less man on our side. Looks like even Byakuya has fallen for her."

Him and just about every other man out there. Now that word had traveled about their time together, men were all working on their proposals. They were practicing in front of a mirror for hours and reviewing pick-up lines. They were going to have their night with her this time!

But there was one Soul Reaper who beat them to the punch and was in her room right now.

Yumichika was sitting on the sofa with Hanabi on his lap, straddling his hips. Her fingers lightly stroked his cheek as he kissed her neck. She nibbled on his ear and grabbed fistfuls of his hair. He didn't mind at all and ran his hands through her locks as well. This was a wonderful feeling. Far better than he could ever dream. It was one thing to fantasize, but another to experience it for real.

He moved his hands over her back and down her smooth shoulders. He caressed her hips and moved his hand upward over her flat stomach.

That was when she unexpectedly grabbed his hand and forced it back. "No, not there please."

Yumichika chuckled. "Oh, ticklish, eh?" He tried to spider his fingers over her middle, but she twisted his hand back painfully.

"I mean it!" The eyes that once held sweet lovely innocence were now narrow and angry.

He backed off. "Ok. I won't touch you there."

Her smile returned. "Good!" She kissed him again.

Yumichika was confused as to why she didn't want her stomach being touched, but was pleased to know that not touching it would bring him kisses from her sweet pink lips.

Ten minutes later, he left her room and headed back to the Squad 11 training hall. But he was cut off by Ikkaku.

"And just where have you been?"

He jumped. "N- nowhere."

"Don't lie to me! You were with her, weren't you?" Ikkaku snapped.

"She invited me!"

"Back off! She's mine!"

Yumichika shot a look at him. "Says who?"

"Excuse me!" Hitsugaya pushed his way between them and over to Hanabi's office door. He knocked loudly. "Open up!"

"Come in!" she sang from inside.

He kicked the door open and slammed it shut behind himself. He wasn't happy in the slightest.

Despite his forceful entry, Hanabi remained in her seat, completely undisturbed. She treated the whole thing as if this sort of thing happened everyday. She was still smiling at him. That smile didn't have any effect on him whatsoever. If anything, it made him that much angrier.

"You!"

"Me?" she spoke calmly.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Why, whatever do you mean?"

"You know damn well what I mean! Where do you get off seducing men like that?"

She took his words as flattery and grinned. "Oh, Captain…"

"And don't 'Captain' me!" Hitsugaya roared. "Don't think that you can fool me! I'm not like the others! I won't fall for it! I saw you kissing Byakuya and I know you were doing the same thing to Yumichika. I want it to stop now! Right now, do you hear me?"

She blew her cheeks out with a mouthful of air.

"Don't look at me like that!" He stomped his foot on the ground.

"What look?" she asked innocently.

"I know your plan! I've seen it before! You put on an act to attract men and when that doesn't work or if they want to ask you something you don't like, you distract them! You change the topic to make them forget and lose track of what they were saying so they can never ask you! I should know because you've done it to me before."

"Oh, Captain…" she sighed.

"Just shut up and stop talking! I want you to listen!"

"But why? I haven't broken any rules. I've done nothing wrong."

"You're distracting men and trying to seduce them."

"And that's wrong? I didn't see any rule against doing it. Besides, I'm only being nice. I mean no harm."

"Drop the act!"

She remained in her seat. Like a bored child watching an overly long movie, she swung her long legs back and forth. Hitsugaya's loud tone hadn't shaken her at all. Was nothing frightening to her?

"It's all an act! The way you talk, everything… It's all an act! I want you to stop it!"

He paused waiting for her response. Predictably, she smiled at him once more with a icy chuckle. She leaned to one side and rested her cheek on her open palm. She wasn't intimidated at all. She took it as nothing more than a friendly chat.

"Hitsugaya…" Her eyes locked onto his. "Won't you make it snow for me again?"

He got a chill from her. Not by her cold voice, but by her eyes. They were like spheres of emerald flame. They were beautiful as well as chilling. But he stood his ground.

She stood up and walked over to him. "Please make it snow for me again."

It didn't sound like a request this time, but as an order. Why the sudden change? Was she showing her true colors now?

"Hitsugaya… Why the scary look?" She stroked his chin.

He slapped her hand away and pulled out his sword. "Stay back!"

Even with a blade pointed straight at her, Hanabi was showing no signs of fear. It was as if she knew he really wasn't going to do anything. Then she smiled and looked at the sharp blade as if it were rubber. "Why are you pointing such a thing at me? Such a dangerous zanpakuto, Hitsugaya."

He didn't budge.

"Do you really think of me as a threat? I've done nothing wrong. But if my crime is being beautiful…" She took the blade in her hand and lowered the point of his zanpakuto forcibly to her heart. "… then go ahead and cut me." She had more strength than her skinny arm let on. Soon, she took her hand off the blade. "Cut me up wherever you want as many times as you please."

Hitsugaya was numb. What was she plotting? Was this some sort of trick? A trap? What did she mean by this? What was she doing?

There she stood, point of his blade pressed against her chest making a tiny indent in her kimono, smiling. Always smiling. It was a sweet, but chilling smile this time.

His arm trembled, shaking the sword a little. He was losing strength in his arm. Even his knees were growing weak. He couldn't bring himself to do it. He couldn't run her through. He lowered his blade.

Hanabi patted his head. "I figured as much. You have a kind heart."

"Don't… touch… me…" he snarled. "Don't pat my head…"

"Ok," she chuckled.

"I never said that I wouldn't stab you in the future. And I never said that I trusted you. Lowering my blade means nothing." He raised his eyes to hers. "This changes nothing."

"I'm sure." She put an arm around him. "But you make it so hard to be mad. You're just so cute."

"I said don't touch me!"

This time she didn't remove her arm. "Why don't you like me? Have I done anything to hurt you?"

"That's beside the point."

"Is it?" She moved closer, her long hair falling over her shoulder and curtaining Hitsugaya's face. She was far too close for his comfort.

"Get off."

"Hm?"

"I said off!" He pushed her away. "You won't seduce me! You won't trick me! I meant what I said and nothing you can do will change that."

She giggled. "I never expected you to."

He stared. "Huh?" What the hell did that mean?

"I'm perfectly aware that not everyone will like me without a little persuasion. I knew that from the start. All I really want is to be liked and admired by all. What girl doesn't want a little attention from men?"

"Attention or obsession?"

She didn't answer that. He didn't expect her to.

Hanabi nibbled on her thumbnail. "Captain… I'm sure that you're wondering how I could become a captain and command an entire squad, correct?"

"Well, so far, the only skills I've seen you portray involve flirting. Do you have any skills other than that?"

"Why? Do I really need others?"

He forced a laugh. "Flirting won't help you in a Hollow attack. You know that, right? Not unless you can seduce it to death. And don't say that you can seduce other men to go after it for you. It doesn't work that way when you're all alone. You have to know how to fight. Everyone does. There is no easy way out."

"But that's why I have this." She pulled out her zanpakuto and showed it to him. "You fight with yours, correct? That's what zanpakutos are for. That's what you fight with. I know how it works."

Hitsugaya couldn't tell whether she really meant that or if it was just a stupid joke. But then he had a sudden thought. "Come to think of it, you never did tell us what your zanpakuto was. What does it do, anyway?"

"It helps me." Again with that smile.

_No kidding_… "If you're not going to tell me, then…"

"I never said that. I'm just waiting for a good time to do it."

He was about ready to bang his head against the wall. Yet more beating around the bush. He was really getting sick of this. "Then I'm out of here. But I'll be keeping an eye on you. Make no mistake about that."

As he put his hand on the door, he became aware that something was very wrong. He knew that the second his back was turned, she would do something. He turned at the sound of the blade clearing its sheath.

Hanabi was standing with her zanpakuto pulled halfway out of its pink sheath. His eyes caught hers and he froze. He couldn't move and he couldn't look away.

"Sing… Amourdoki."

Rangiku was jealous of Hanabi, but not nearly as much as the other women. She was used to men staring at her chest. Besides, she had hoped that they could become good friends. She had no idea that Soi Fon was so self-conscious. It was rather funny.

As she passed by an open window, she did a double-take. It was snowing.

"That shouldn't be… unless…" She hurried back to the office. She threw the door open. "Captain?"

Hitsugaya was sitting at his desk, but wasn't doing paperwork for once. Instead, he was picking petals off of a rose, one by one with a dreamy look on his face.

"Making wishes of love on a flower, sir?"

He sighed longingly and pulled off more petals. "She loves me… She loves me more… she loves me…"

"Uh, Captain..?"

He pulled the last red petal off the now bare rose. "She loves me..!"

"Captain!"

He looked up. "Hi, Matsumoto! Isn't the snow lovely today?"

"Well… I suppose, since you're the one who's causing it."

"I can't help it. I feel really good today!"

"But I thought you caused this to happen if you were really upset or something."

He shrugged. "I guess it also happens when I'm…" He sighed again, staring at the bear rose. "… in love..!"

It was so cute to see him in love like this, but also a little creepy.

"Have you finished your report, sir?"

"Life's too short for reports!" He kicked his legs in the air wildly, overcome with sudden giddiness. "I'm in love! I'm in love, love, LOVE!"

"Captain, calm down!"

Hanabi appeared in the door. "Oh, Captain…" She beckoned him with her finger.

He happily acquiesced and jumped over his desk, running to her with top speed. He jumped the last remaining steps and glomped her from behind. She walked back to her room with Hitsugaya clinging to her back.

Rangiku just stared. "What the hell was that?"

They sat on her sofa, Hitsugaya's back to her. He kicked his legs childishly, smiling like a fool. He was allowing Hanabi to braid his hair. There wasn't much there to braid so she also clipped hair ornaments in his white locks.

"Is it done yet?"

"Not yet," she chuckled.

He shut his eyes tight. He couldn't wait to see, but that wasn't the reason he shut his eyes. It was the sheer joy of having her hands on his head, combing through his white hair. "I love it when you touch my hair."

"I can tell." She clipped a heart-shaped barrette in his hair.

"Done yet?"

"No."

"How about now?"

"No, silly." She laughed. "What's gotten you so childish like this?"

He honestly didn't know himself. "Maybe you're mistaking giddiness for childishness. I'm just so happy!" He kicked his legs again and pulled his fists up under his chin. "I can't stand it! I just want to jump around and scream it to the world!"

She kissed the top of his head. "You're too cute for your own good."

He squealed with delight.

She fastened a pink ribbon on the top of his head right where she had kissed him and declared, "Done!" She handed him a mirror.

Excited, Hitsugaya snatched it from her and took a peek. His hair was covered with hairclips and ribbons. He had a large pink ribbon on the top of his head that almost made him look like a pampered show poodle. He gave his head a little shake and heard tinkling. She had also put bells in his hair, playing their music every time he moved.

"I look cute!"

She laughed. "Yes, you do! Yes, you do, my little Shiro-whiro!" She nuzzled his face.

The snow was really coming down outside the window now. Fresh snowflakes danced on the wind outside, depicting his love for her. It was as pure as freshly fallen snow.

Or perhaps, not as pure as he thought.

* * *

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	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

Things had been pretty quiet around Ichigo's town for a while now. He was beginning to wonder if something was going on. But this was as good a time as any to get all his homework done and pass his upcoming test in history.

But the tranquility of his bedroom was disturbed by the sound of someone fluttering through his open window. He looked up and saw Rukia standing behind him at his window. "What do you want?" he asked in his usual tone.

She looked shaken. "Ichigo, it's horrible! The Soul Society..!"

Fearing the worst, Ichigo jumped to his feet. "What? What is it?"

"We're…"

"Yes? Yes?!"

"Getting a new captain!"

Stunned, Ichigo just looked at her, expecting her to continue with the bad news she was holding back. "And?"

"And my brother has fallen in love with her!"

His brow twitched. "… And..?"

"'And'? What do you mean 'and'?!"

He didn't know whether to be more upset at the fact that she had just answered his question with another question or that she was annoyed at him for not knowing what she meant.

"Ichigo, the Soul Society has been completely turned upside-down! Hanabi has every man falling for her left and right! They're more concerned about dinner plans with her than getting any work done! Don't you get it?"

Just what was so bad about that?! "I don't get it."

"You idiot!" She threw a book at his head.

"Hey! It's not my problem you're so vague! Explain better, dummy!"

She showed her teeth at him like a wild animal threatening an enemy. "Ichigo, it's plain as day! No one's working! All the men are in love with her! She's distracting them!"

"Rukia! Who's your hot friend? Can I meet her?!" Kon came flying out of the closet and was under her foot in seconds.

She continued as if nothing happened. "Byakuya has also fallen for her. I've never seen him like this before. And Renji, too. Everyone has fallen for her. If she becomes a captain, then this might continue forever and no one will get anything done!"

Ichigo sat back down in his chair. "Why should this concern me? I seem to recall _somebody_ telling me not to get involved in the Soul Society's affairs seeing as how I'm just a substitute Soul Reaper."

Rukia stepped over Kon and over to him. "Ichigo, this does concern you. Don't act like you don't care."

"Fine, fine." He groaned. "So other than being really hot, what else is she like?"

Rukia thought about it. "That's pretty much it."

"Huh? Then how can she be a captain if she can't do anything else?"

"Who needs to do anything else when you got a body like that?!"

Rukia stepped on Kon again to shut him up. "Good point, but the Head Captain appointed her so there must be something to her." She put a finger to her chin thoughtfully. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen her do anything. Not even kido. I don't even know what her zanpakuto can do or its name. She hasn't revealed anything to us."

Ichigo was about to say something when a strong spiritual pressure appeared outside. "Damn, a Hollow."

"I'll get it, you stay here."

"Who do you think I am? I haven't seen any action all week!" Ichigo pressed his Soul Badge to his chest and left his body behind. "I'll get it!"

Him and Rukia left the house, Kon right behind and followed the spirit pressure to the park. A large Hollow was waiting for them, roaring furiously.

Ichigo grabbed his sword. "It's just a small fry. I'll finish this in two seconds."

The Hollow turned out to be much tougher than it looked. Ichigo was knocked aside in seconds. Rukia stepped up to the plate and got ready to help. Ichigo was back on his feet, insisting that he could take it down without her help.

Before an argument could erupt, an arrow shot out of nowhere and into the Hollow's skull. It vanished in moments leaving behind no trace of it's rampage.

They both turned and saw Uryu standing by a swing set. "It's about time you two got here. You had me worried that you wouldn't show up."

Irked that his classmate had taken away his opponent, Ichigo unleashed his rage. "Hey! I totally had that! What the hell are you doing here?!"

"I told you. I came here to get rid of it since the both of you were taking so long to get here."

Ichigo slipped back into his body and tucked Kon back into his pocket. "I could have handled it myself."

Yet another soul joined them, landing just a few feet away from where the Hollow stood. Hanabi flipped her hair back out of her face and smiled. "Oh. I guess you didn't need me after all. All that traveling for nothing."

Ichigo looked right at her and didn't even bat an eye. "Who are you?"

She curtsied. "Hanabi at your service."

"Oh. Hi, I guess." She was very pretty but not nearly as wonderful as Rukia had led him to believe. "Well, you came here a little too late. We're done here."

"No." Uryu's tone was cold and serious. "There's still one left."

Ichigo looked around. "Really? I don't feel anything. Where is it?"

"Right here." Uryu raised his bow and pointed it right at Hanabi.

For the first time, the smile was gone from her face. "Huh?"

Uryu didn't move his bow. He meant it.

"Uryu, what the hell do you think you're doing?!" Ichigo stepped in front of his arrow. "Are you blind? She's not a Hollow!"

"Are _you_ blind?" Uryu kept his gaze fixed on her. "Out of the way!"

"Not until you explain!"

"Ichigo, I know you suck at detecting spirit pressure, but this is just sad!"

"Then shut up and explain it to me!"

Hanabi remained in her spot, unmoving. "What are you doing? I'm not a Hollow! Are you crazy?"

Uryu kept his arrow pointed right at her.

Rukia looked from Hanabi to Uryu. "Wait a minute! I don't sense a Hollow's presence, either. And she's been at the Soul Society all week long! How could thousands of Soul Reapers be wrong? Uryu what are you talking about?"

"Hey, I never said that she was a Hollow, now did I?"

"Then what are you talking about?"

Without another word, Uryu fired an arrow straight at Hanabi. It soared past her body, nicking the side of her kimono just under her rib. The slashed silky material slid down her stomach, revealing a dark gapping hole in her abdomen.

"She's an Arrancar!"

Ichigo and Rukia were dumbstruck. An Arrancar?! Living among them at the Soul Society? Why didn't anyone notice?

Hanabi looked down at her hole and smirked, lifting her gaze back to the one who shot her. "So how did you know?"

"It's faint, but I could tell by your spiritual pressure. It's muddled, but clearly Arrancar. Plus, when you moved your hair back, I caught sight of _that_." He gestured to her ears. She flipped back her blue silver hair, showing off her white earrings. "You've hidden fragments of your mask in the form of earrings. A Hollow mask doesn't have to be on the face itself. After all, Nel's was on top of her head. But I have to say that you did a very decent job of hiding it. Not even these two noticed."

Her usual innocent smile was gone, leaving a chillingly cold one in its place. "Very clever. I never thought that anyone would notice. Not bad for a Quincy."

Rukia reached for her sword, but Hanabi jumped out of range. "What are you planning? Did Aizen send you?"

"Of course he did! This is my mission after all."

"What mission?" Ichigo demanded. "What are you planning? What's this about?"

She wagged a finger at him. "Now _that_ I won't tell you." She winked at him. "You'll have to find that out on your own."

"Tell us right now, you bastard!"

"Is that any way to talk to a lady?" Hanabi pouted. "I get better treatment back at the Soul Society."

The color drained from Rukia's face. "That's right..! What have you done to them?!"

"Hm?" She turned. "What do you mean?"

"The way they act… It's not normal. Even my own brother… It's almost as if they're being controlled! What have you done to them?"

She turned her gaze to the sky, feigning innocence. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Like hell, you don't!" she screamed. "I know you've done something to them all! My brother never acted that way before! And Hitsugaya, too, for that matter. Just a few days ago, he hated you! Now he won't get off your lap! What have you done to them?!"

Hanabi gave her an icy smile. "It's all thanks to my zanpakuto here." Hanabi put a hand on the sword at her side. "This is my dear little Amourdoki. Isn't she lovely?" Her face softened like a mother looking at her newborn baby.

Rukia's eyes narrowed on the sword. "So that's the cause of all this..?"

Hanabi's grin spread. "Indeed. She's so powerful. We get along so well. No man can resist our charm." Her voice was normally so calm and innocent, but it had changed since she had dropped the act. It was still calm but it was chilling, as if they were speaking to the goddess, Eris. It was seductive but cold.

Ichigo took a step towards her. "I don't care about those other men, you freak! No matter what you say, I'm not falling for your tricks!"

It took Rukia up to this point to realize something. Ichigo wasn't getting weak-kneed. Unlike the others, he wasn't acting love-sick. Uryu too for that matter. But how could that be? They were both men, weren't they?

Hanabi laughed. "You don't understand. You don't have a choice. I can have any man I want. I can make them do whatever I want. I have the power."

"We'll see about that!" He reached into his back pocket for his Soul Badge and Uryu raised his bow.

"Sing, Amourdoki!" She unsheathed her blade and raised it high above her head. They watched helplessly as it began to glow bright pink and change shape. In a burst of light, the trio found themselves staring at her sword's released form. A pink and white bow.

"A bow?"

Uryu grinned slightly. "This might be interesting after all. It's been a long time since I've been up against someone who uses a bow." He raised his own.

"Don't let your guard down, guys!" Rukia warned.

"I won't!" Ichigo's fingers grazed the edge of his Soul Badge.

Before he could change, Hanabi pointed her bow straight at them, an arrow materializing out of nowhere.

_Just like mine..! _Uryu gaped.

She fired two shots, one at Uryu and the other at Rukia.

"Look out!" Ichigo shoved her aside and took the arrow in the shoulder.

Uryu took his in the chest, unable to dodge in time.

Rukia watched, waiting. There was no blood and the arrows disappeared shortly after impact. "Are you guys ok?"

Ichigo examined his shoulder. "What the hell? That didn't even hurt."

Uryu rubbed his chest. "I know… That's strange. An arrow that doesn't cause damage..? There must be something more to this." He raised his gaze to Ichigo. "Hey, you should change into your…" He didn't finish.

Confused, Ichigo looked at him. "You ok?"

Hanabi blinked. "Whoops. I didn't mean for that to happen…" Then she giggled like a child. "Oh, well. Fun is fun!"

Rukia looked from her to the two boys. _What is going on? What does she mean by that?_

Neither Ichigo nor Uryu moved. They just stared at each other.

"You two ok?" she asked, a bit scared to know the answer.

Ichigo's eyes suddenly lit up. "Uryu…" He looked him up and down. "You're hot!"

Rukia's jaw nearly hit the ground.

Uryu returned Ichigo's blissful expression and grinned at him stupidly. "You're not so bad yourself."

Rukia's legs nearly gave out on her. Did she just hear them correctly.

Ichigo took his hand out of his pocket, Soul Badge long forgotten. "My God, you look so good right now! I never knew you could look so… so sexy!"

Uryu cast his bow aside. "Come here, you annoying stud!"

"I'm all yours, you four-eyed freak in my bed!"

The two charged at each other at an alarming pace and met at the center of the park where they immediately embraced and engaged in an extremely passionate kiss.

Rukia screamed. "Wha… What are you _doing_?!"

Ichigo looped his arms around Uryu's neck, kissing him passionately. Uryu slipped his hand under Ichigo's shirt, caressing the soft tan skin beneath it. Ichigo then brought one leg up and hocked it around his lover's hip. To show more of his passion, Uryu nibbled on his ear lobe, making him shiver with pleasure. Ichigo ripped off Uryu's glasses and cast them into the grass. Uryu was panting and his eyelids were lowered, showing only a bit of his azure orbs. But he was so happy. This felt so good!

Rukia ran over to them and tried to break them up. "Hey! Hey! I said hey! Stop it! What are you doing?! Snap out of it!"

Ichigo pushed her aside and continued kissing Uryu.

"Oh, Uryu!"

"Oh, Ichigo!"

"Oh, my God!" Rukia tried to pull them apart, but it was all in vain. They wouldn't split. They just pushed her aside and continued.

The Quincy then pulled Ichigo down onto the grass and rolled over and sat on top of him, straddling his hips. He pushed Ichigo's shoulders into the ground and kissed him furiously.

Rukia couldn't stop them. She was so distracted by the two making out, she didn't have time to notice Hanabi flashing away.

She escaped.

Rukia looked back at the two lovers in the grass and moaned. "Now what do I do?"

* * *

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	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7:**

It took Rukia several minutes to pry the two apart, but not without help. Kisuke and the others at the shop felt a disturbance in the park and rushed right over to help. Their combined efforts resulted in both 'lovers' being locked up in separate rooms in the Urahara shop. Tessai along with Jinta and Ururu managed to hold Uryu down while Ichigo was taken into the next room with Rukia, Yoruichi and Kisuke. Ichigo still had a goofy look plastered on his face and his neck was covered in hickies. He kept murmuring Uryu's name with a smile, resting his chin on the tabletop.

Kisuke couldn't help but laugh at this. "Come on. Am I the only one who thinks this is funny? I can't be, right?"

"This is no laughing matter!" Rukia scolded.

"But look at him! That's hilarious!" Kisuke pointed to Ichigo who was now trying to chiseled Uryu's name into the table with a pen. "How sweet."

"Mr. Urahara…"Rukia seethed.

"What? It's funny!"

Ichigo sighed dreamily. "Oh, Uryu..!"

"Snap out of it!"

"But he's so dreamy and cute..!" Ichigo rested his head in his hands and stared into space. "He's wonderful..!"

"Please tell me this isn't permanent," Rukia groaned, unable to look at him this way.

"It shouldn't be," Kisuke answered. "Very few zanpakuto effects last forever. It should wear off soon."

"How soon?"

He shrugged. "How the heck should I know?"

"Boss!" Jinta came running into the room. "We can't hold him down for much longer! He's a fighter!"

"Ichigo!" Uryu screamed from the other room. "Where is my Ichigo?! Ichigo!"

Said boy jumped to his feet and ran towards the voice. "Uryu! I'm a-comin', sweetheart!"

Before he could get to the door, Rukia reached out, grabbed him and slammed him to the ground. "I said snap out of it!"

There came crashing from the next room and Jinta turned around. "That's good, Ururu! Hold him down just like that! Don't let him out of that headlock!" He slammed the door shut behind himself.

Ichigo whined sadly. "Uryu..!"

"Shut it!"

Kisuke sipped his tea as if this was nothing out of the ordinary. "So tell me about what's been going on back at the Soul Society."

"It's as I said." Rukia threw Ichigo into a seat next to her and sat down. "It's total chaos. All the men are neglecting their duties and are chasing after Hanabi. I can't believe we didn't notice anything!"

"She's very good at hiding her spirit pressure, that's for sure."

Ichigo purred into the table, "Uryu… Uryu..! Oh, where is my Uryu..? I want my dear sweet little Uryu…"

Rukia rolled her eyes. "God, I hope this will end soon."

"Hard to say. We still don't know the extent of her power. But clearly she has the whole Soul Society under her spell. I'd say it must be pretty powerful to make Ichigo act like this." Kisuke directed his attention to Ichigo giggling and playing with a lock of his own hair. "I never thought I'd see the day when the mighty Ichigo acts like an idiot. Now my life is complete."

"This is no time for jokes!"

"Who said I was joking?"

"Can we please get back to the matter at hand? What are we going to do about her?"

Suddenly, Ichigo's head snapped up and he looked wildly around. "Wh- what happened?"

Yoruichi wagged her tail. "Back, are we?"

Ichigo rubbed his head. "What the hell just happened to me?"

"You fell in love with Uryu," Kisuke grinned.

"Wha-? Don't joke like that!"

Kisuke pointed to his neck. "But you have the bite marks to prove it."

Pale, Ichigo clasped a hand to his neck and gasped.

"See, Romeo? You really know how to get some lovin', huh? I thought it was cute. Sick and wrong, but cute."

Ichigo's face turned bright red and sputtered, unable to form any words. This was a horrible! A total nightmare!

"But there's one thing I don't get," Rukia said, ignoring him. "If her power is to make men fall in love with her, then why didn't it work on Ichigo and Uryu? And why did they fall in love with each other instead?"

Kisuke fanned himself with his white fan. "I'd say it's because her arrows make you fall in love with the first person you see, male or female. And if I had to guess… I'd say that the reason why her looks didn't work on them is because they're not Soul Reapers."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Simple. It worked on the others because they're Soul Reapers. Her power had no effect on those two because they weren't Soul Reapers. Ichigo was human when you saw her, correct?"

Come to think of it, he was. Neither him nor Uryu were Soul Reapers when she showed up. That must have been it.

"I see. So her looks only effect Soul Reapers, but her arrows effect anyone they hit. I get it now. But then… How do we fix this? I still don't get what she's trying to do."

"Isn't it obvious?" Yoruichi asked. "She's planning on making all the men fall in love with her to get them on her side. It's very hard to say 'no' to the person you love."

"Yes, but it's more of an obsession than love, isn't it?" Kisuke pointed out. "Besides, we still aren't sure what her plan really is. Make them all fall for her for what? There must be something more."

"Then what the hell are we just standing around for?!" Ichigo suddenly found his voice again, though his face was still red. "Let's find her and kick her ass!"

"Ichigo, you're not serious, are you?"

"What's not to be serious about? She's evil, ain't she? Why can't we just kick her butt?!"

"Because of what she can do, Ichigo," Kisuke explained. "You should know after seeing it firsthand. You can't fight her."

"Why the hell not?!"

"Because you'll fall in love with her."

"Not if I'm not a Soul Reaper."

"Then how do you intend to fight her, huh?" Kisuke inquired. "Besides, from what I can tell, if she uses those arrows, it won't matter if you're a Soul Reaper or not. They'll effect you. I think it's best if you stay out of this one."

"Like hell I will!"

Rukia stood up. "I've got to go back and warn the others. I'll be back as soon as I can."

Ichigo would have insisted on going with her if he hadn't been so busy trying to convince Kisuke to let him fight through his fists and screams.

~*~*~

Meanwhile, Hanabi had returned to the Soul Society and went back to what she did best: fooling everyone. She had numerous dates that afternoon and was going to make sure that she went to each one on time. She made-out with Yumichika first, then Ikkaku, then five other men. After that, she went to Ukitake's room for a snack. They shared licorice, sticking one end in each of their mouths and chewed until their lips met in the middle where they shared a kiss. Then she had a play date with Hitsugaya in his office. She tied ribbons in his hair and allowed him to eat a cookie from her mouth. By sunset, she ended the day with Byakuya. They sat on a rooftop and watched the sun set beyond the horizon. She rested her head on his shoulder and he held her hand.

"Isn't this nice?"

He nodded. "I haven't felt this way in a long time."

"Do you love me?"

He turned to her and kissed the top of her head. "Of course I do. I'm helpless to feel any other way."

She smiled, but not because she felt the same. She was just pleased to hear him admit it.

A moment later, Byakuya sat up and took a look around. "I wonder where Rukia is. I haven't seen her lately. Maybe she has another mission in the World of the Living."

Hanabi stroked his chest. "That must be it. You should relax and not think about her so much. She can handle herself."

He nodded. "Yes, I suppose you're right."

She looked back down at her kimono. She had managed to patch up the tear around her Hollow hole before anyone had time to notice. Not like it really mattered. Soon everyone would be too in love with her to care. Arrancar or not, they would love her no matter what. They wouldn't care. It was just as she told Aizen.

~*~*~

"_Send you to the Soul Society? Now why would I do that?"_

"_Because I can prove to you that I can handle it myself," explained Hanabi, her long hair tied back in a ponytail. "There'll be no need for you to waste your energy on such a thing. I can take care of all of them all by myself."_

_Gin turned his everlasting smile to Aizen. "Aw, can't you let her go? She certainly seems eager enough. Maybe she can handle it after all."_

_Aizen's face didn't change. He remained seated in his throne, resting his chin on the back of his hand. "It's not that she's not eager enough. I just don't think she can handle it, that's all. It's nothing personal."_

_Her eyes glowed with determination. "I can do this! I promise you!"_

_He sat back in his chair, grinning. "Hanabi… You were always one of my favorites…"_

_Her face softened. _

"_However… I just don't think that it will work out the way you had planned."_

"_So let her go and find out for herself, sir," Gin smiled._

"_No. I've lost far too many Arrancar as it is. Why should I waste the most beautiful one I have?"_

_Though she had been called that who knows how many times, the compliment never sounded so good unless it was coming from his lips. Aizen did find her beautiful after all. _

"_She should stay here. I wouldn't want that pretty face to be scratched."_

_Gin's smile spread. "Aw, you're so kind, Lord Aizen. Always so poetic." _

_Hanabi stepped closer to his throne. "Be that as it may, I can prove to you that I am strong enough to bring them all down for you. Lord Aizen, all you need to do is stay seated in your chair and I'll do the rest. I promise I can do this! I'll destroy the Soul Society for you!"_

_This time he didn't say anything. All he did was stare back at her._

"_Please, sir. Let me do this."_

_He crossed his legs. "And what would you have to gain from doing the job for me? Hmm?"_

_Her emerald eyes wavered slightly. Would he take it as an insult if she did the job in his stead? After a moment's hesitation, she answered. "I would gain your approval."_

"_Approval?" he repeated._

"_Yes! I would be worthy of praise and you will approve of me and recognize me for my skill."_

_He tapped his finger on his cheek. "Hmm…" He was thinking._

"_Please, sir!" Hanabi insisted. She could handle the job._

_Gin put a hand on his hip. "Ah, sweet, sweet love. It looks like you have another admirer, Aizen. How lucky are you? I'm so jealous."_

"_Jealous, Gin?"_

"_Why, yes! This girl obviously loves you enough to kill people for you! If that's not true love, I don't know what is."_

_It was unclear to her if Gin was actually being serious or not. To him, everything seemed like a joke. He was so good at hiding his true intentions behind that snake-like smile of his._

_Hanabi curled her hands into fists. "Please let me do this."_

_Aizen returned his gaze back to her._

"_I can prove my worth to you. Just let me do this. Please."_

_He smiled at her with a soft chuckle. "Hanabi…"_

_Her heart pounded._

"_You're so beautiful and sweet. You're living proof that the saying 'even a rose has its thorns' is true. No one ever truly knows just what you are thinking or plotting. Not only that, but you are a very good actress. You're able to play the role of a helpless innocent so well. I like that about you."_

_Her heart skipped a beat once more._

"_But I simply cannot let you go."_

"_But why not?" she gasped. Just when she thought that he would let her go, he pulled her back into the cage by her leash._

"_Because I can't lose a beautiful face like yours."_

"_But… But they won't stand a chance!" She held up her sword still in its sheath. "If I use this, then no man can tell me 'no'! You know that! I can make anyone I want fall in love with me! They'll do anything I say!"_

"_True, but it has no effect on women."_

_She gulped. He was right. Women were immune to her love spell. "But… Maybe if I work on it a little more…"_

"_No. You cannot go beyond your limitations like that. Your sword's power cannot be changed. Whether I like it or not, mine will always be the same."_

_Gin snickered. "Like you'd ever want to change it…"_

"_Hanabi," he went on. "You can't alter its power. It's as powerful as it's going to get."_

"_But I can still enslave men with it!"_

"_True…" He rubbed his chin. "Very true… I suppose you might stand a chance if you enslave all the men at the Soul Society. But that's a big job."_

"_I'll do it! I'll do it, Lord Aizen!"_

_He smiled at her again. "Come here." He extended his hand out towards her._

_Heart racing, she climbed the staircase leading to his throne. She took his hand and his fingers coiled around hers and pulled her onto the arm of his chair. This was a great honor! He only let the best of the best- his most prized people up here. Only Gin had come this close to him before and very few others. She was one of the lucky ones. It was rare for him to allow this at all._

"_Hanabi." He stroked her face, making her blush. "As I've said countless times before, I hate having to risk such a pretty face as yours."_

"_But I can fight, too."_

_He closed his eyes with a smirk. "Sweet Hanabi… That is only because of your blade. Without it you are helpless. There is very little you can do against a strong opponent. Face facts, without that sword of yours, you are nothing more than a pretty face."_

_Gin continued to watch from a few feet away, still smiling._

"_But if you insist…"_

"_I do!" She grabbed his hands in hers. "I do! I really do! Please!"_

_Aizen grinned. "Then I'll let you go."_

_Gin raise a brow, but continued to smile. "Oh? You're letting her go, sir?"_

"_She insists." He took her right hand in his and brought it to his lips. "And how can I say 'no' to such a pretty face as that?" He kissed the back of her hand._

_Hanabi's smiled got incredibly big. _

"_Now then," Aizen went on. "I'm allowing you to go to the Soul Society, Hanabi. Do as you will there. If you destroy them all, I don't care. If you enslave them all and bring them back here, I could care less. Just do as you please."_

_She nodded happily. "Yes, sir, I will!"_

~*~*~

And that's what led her up to this point. She wasn't going to let him down. This was her mission and she was going to do it right. She would impress Aizen and make sure that he was as proud as he could be of her. She'd take over the Soul Society for him and she was going to have as much fun as possible along the way.

"Kiss me, Byakuya," she whispered.

And he did just that.

* * *

Now we know… sort of. Hurry up and stop her, Ichigo! Get your revenge!

Please review!


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8:**

By this time, Hanabi had every man completely under her spell. It got to the point where just being motionless in a chair turned them on. In their eyes everything she did was so sexy. Regardless of how the other women felt, Rangiku thought that they could establish a friendship with her. After all, this woman clearly knew how to get a man's attention.

Rangiku passed her a cup of sake. "Go ahead. Drink up."

She took it but didn't drink. "Thank you."

She put aside the bottle and leaned over the table, her large breasts resting atop her folded arms. "So… Tell me."

"Tell you what?"

"Your secret! How do you make them like you so much? I've got to know!"

Hanabi laughed. "Oh, you mean why men find me so attractive. I don't know." Of course she really did. But she wasn't about to let Rangiku know that.

"Even my captain has a little crush on you. I think it's so cute. And he thought that you were a bad person."

If only she knew.

"I've never seen him so happy before. It's like you have this charm about you. Men just can't help themselves."

Hanabi took a sip of her sake. "Oh, you think so?" She lowered her cup. "I don't normally drink sake."

"You don't like it?"

"It's not that. I just never really took a strong liking to it."

Rangiku poured herself another cup. "Do you like to shop?"

"It's not like I have to with all the gifts I'm getting," Hanabi laughed.

The lieutenant laughed, too. "I know what you mean. You're so lucky!"

"Lucky? Really?"

"Yeah! I'd love to get the kind of attention you're getting from all of them."

"Oh." Hanabi was silent again.

Rangiku sipped her sake and let out a deep breath. "So, Hanabi…"

"Yes?"

"Would you consider us friends?" It was an honest question. For some time now, Rangiku was curious as to whether or not they could establish a friendship. She liked Hanabi and thought that they could become good friends.

The beautiful trickster smiled a sweet innocent smile. "Of course! I would love to be friends with you."

"Great! Now I have someone to hang out with when I'm not working." She really meant 'not working'. She avoided work whenever possible. And it looked like Hanabi could con people out of making her do it as well. "So I guess we're friends now, huh? That's great news. Say, how would you feel about going to a hot spring with me later today?"

"Sure, I-"

Ten other Soul Reapers popped their heads into the room. "Can we come, too?"

Hanabi gave a nervous chuckle. "I… Well, I was about to say that I would love to, but I don't have a swimsuit."

Faces bright red, they all chorused in unison, "We can work around that!"

"Get out!" Rangiku threw an empty sake bottle at them, but they didn't leave.

When that failed to do anything, Hanabi took out a handkerchief from her kimono and tossed it to the floor. "Whoops."

All the men took a nosedive to the floor to retrieve it for her. Soon they were all biting and scratching each other, trying to pry it out of everyone else's hand. They all wanted to be the one to return it to her.

Rangiku giggled. "Like I said, you're good at that."

Hanabi winked. "I know."

~*~*~

A few hours later, Rukia came storming back into the shop, fuming. "They won't let me back in!"

"They won't what?"

"They locked the gate and won't let me back into the Seireitei. They blocked it off and said that I couldn't enter. Hanabi's orders!"

"Her orders?!" Ichigo barked. "How can it be her orders? She isn't even a captain yet!"

"They're lovesick just like the rest of the men. Whatever she says goes. There's nothing I can do."

Kisuke lowered his teacup. "Well, maybe you can't get back in, but what about the others? Hanabi only saw Ichigo's human form. She probably has no idea that he's a Soul Reaper. Aside from that, there are also women in the Soul Society who can help from the inside. We just have to send a message to them somehow."

Rukia pulled out her Soul Pager. "I'll do that right now. But we still have to find a way back into the Seireitei."

"Like I said, we can send Ichigo. He's a Soul reaper, ain't he?"

"But he's also a man. Hanabi can put him under that spell again."

"Like I'd let her!" Ichigo spat. "I won't fall for the same trick twice."

Rukia clicked a few buttons before glancing up. "What about Uryu? How's he doing?"

"Still in shock from earlier." Kisuke was still smiling. "He's balled up in the next room and won't talk to anyone. By the way, how is your neck doing, Ichigo?"

He covered the spot Kisuke was talking about and shot him a dirty look. "That's not important!"

~*~*~

Hanabi stroked Hitsugaya's white hair while looking out the window. It was such a nice day and now that she had taken care of Rukia, there was nothing left to worry about. She was the only Soul Reaper who knew the truth and now she couldn't tell anyone about what was really going on. All the loose ends were taken care of.

Hitsugaya looked up at her. "What are you looking at?"

"Oh, nothing, Toshiro. Do you mind if I call you that?" She already knew the answer to that.

"You can call me anything you want!" he beamed. "I just love hearing your voice. It's so nice."

She smiled and shifted on the couch. "Oh? You do, huh?" She started to tickle him.

He kicked and thrashed around as her fingers caressed his stomach and neck. "St- stop it! Stop! I'm ticklish! Stop!"

She didn't and did it more. "You're so cute, Toshiro. So utterly cute and adorable."

He laughed loudly. He pushed against her hands, attempting to keep her wondering fingers at bay. "Stop! It tickles!"

She continued.

"I'm gonna wet my pants!"

She laughed along with him.

The only thing that stopped them was a knock at the door.

Hanabi stopped and Hitsugaya sat up, gasping for breath. Hanabi stood up and opened the door. Outside, five women were waiting for her. They didn't look happy.

"Can I help you?"

Soi Fon kept her glare as fiery as ever, burning holes in Hanabi's face.

"What's this about?" Hanabi looked around at all the glaring faces. "What's going on?"

"Invade our trust, will you?"

"Huh?" She put on her best innocent face. "Why, whatever do you mean?"

Rangiku, who had been standing behind all the other women, held up her Soul Pager. "Mind repeating that for us, Rukia?"

The tiny voice from the Pager rang loud and clear for all to hear. "Hanabi's really an Arrancar sent by Aizen! She has the entire male body under her spell! Stop her at once!"

All the color drained from Hanabi's beautiful face. "Uh…"

Rangiku's glare matched the other women's. "Thank you, Rukia. Consider it done." She hung up, ignoring the tight knot in her gut.

Hanabi took a step back. "This… this isn't what it looks like…"

"Really?" Soi Fon advanced. "Because it looks to me like you've been fooling us all from the start! An Arrancar, are you?"

"You… you can't prove that." Hanabi backed up, her voice shaking slightly. "It's all a lie! I'm not really a… She's tricking you! I couldn't be! I'm… I'm just… I'm not…" She made her eyes as teary as she could. "Please believe me!"

"I don't!" Soi Fon reached for her blade.

"Captain Hitsugaya was right!" Rangiku hollered. "You couldn't be trusted all along!"

The other women got ready.

"Growl, Haineko!"

"Run, Itegumo!"

Nemu, and Nanao reached for theirs as well, but Soi Fon beat them to the punch and jumped through the air, ready to cut Hanabi in half.

Surprisingly enough, Hanabi hadn't moved an inch. She just stood there as if ready to accept her fate. No, that wasn't it. She was ready, but not to face the music. She already had an ace up her sleeve and he happened to be jumping off the couch at that moment. Hitsugaya swung his sword in front of Hanabi where it clashed with Soi Fon's.

She gasped, not ready for this. "Get out of the way, Captain Hitsugaya!"

He didn't. "I won't let you touch her!"

Hanabi's smile spread. Hitsugaya would not let her get hurt.

Rangiku stopped in her tracks. "Captain!"

He paid her no attention.

"Captain Hitsugaya! Please, she's the enemy!"

He took Hanabi's hand in his left while keeping a firm grip on his sword with the right. "I won't let you touch her! She will not be harmed! Hanabi, I will protect you with my life!"

She smiled again. "See that you do."

Rangiku pushed forward. "Captain, please! You don't mean that! You're under a spell! Please wake up!"

Hanabi's expression quickly changed from sinister to frail. "Oh, Toshiro! I'm so scared! Please help me! They're going to hurt me!"

Surely he wouldn't fall for that.

He held her hand tightly and gave the women a death glare. "I'll protect you, Hanabi! I won't let them harm you! Come on!"

~*~*~

The other men had no idea what was going on just a short distance away. They were still working out their plans with her for that evening.

Byakuya himself was practicing in front of a mirror and working on his handsome faces. He raised a brow thinking that it would make him look more dashing, but inside it just looked as if he were saying 'is that so?'. That face was a big no. Next he tried keeping his eyes mostly closed thinking that it would give him a pimp kind of look. Instead he looked as if he were falling asleep.

"Damn, I'll look stoned if I make that face."

He puffed out his cheeks and tried all over again. Then he noticed another person standing next to him, sharing his mirror.

"What are you doing here?"

Yumichika was carefully combing his hair, trying different styles. He parted it to the left, then to the right, then down the middle. He tried slicking it back, spiking it and even curling it. "Be honest, does this make me look like a punk rocker?" He pointed to his spiked hair.

"Very much."

Frowning, Yumichika combed it back down. "Maybe I should just keep it this way… But I want to look really hot for my date with her tonight. I can't just show up looking the way I do everyday."

Ikkaku shoved him aside and into a wall. "Outta the way, Sissy!" He started to shine up his head in the mirror. "I want it to shine tonight! She'll be able to she her reflection in it on our date."

Yumichika shoved him back. "Your date? I'm going out with her tonight! I have to look stunning!"

He laughed. "Ha! Fat chance! I'm dating her tonight. Get in line!"

"You get in line!"

Hisagi kicked them both aside and took over the mirror. "I have to get ready for my date. I'm seeing Hanabi tonight."

"Over my dead body!"

They all began to shove and punch each other.

"She's mine!"

"Says who?!"

"I'm dating her tonight!"

"She's so far out of your league!"

"This coming from the man everyone knows is gay inside!"

"I am not gay! If I was then why am I dating her?! She's all woman!"

"So are you!"

"Shut up and stay out of this, Ikkaku!"

"You shut up!"

Yumichika had some fight in him after all. He tackled Ikkaku to the ground and started to slam Ikkaku's head into the bathroom tiles. Ikkaku rolled and sent him flying. He jumped on Yumichika and started to punch him in the face. He kicked Ikkaku in the stomach punching him back. Hisagi got in on the action as well and jumped on them, creating a big dog pile. They punched, kicked and even bite each other. Each one insisting that Hanabi was his.

Byakuya stood back out of the way. There was no way he was messing up his clothes before his date with her. Besides, while they were preoccupied, he could sneak away and have her all to himself.

As he made his way towards the door, he heard glass shattering. "What did you break? Your skulls or a mirror?"

They all stopped and looked around. None of the mirrors were broken. It wasn't them. But then they looked out the window. They saw glass from the window above shatter and saw Hitsugaya and Hanabi jumping out from the office above.

"Hanabi!"

Forgetting their fight, they all jumped to their feet and followed the two outside.

Hanabi was unhurt, but Hitsugaya's fist was covered in blood and broken glass. It appeared that he had smashed the window above with his bare hands.

Soi Fon landed on the ground before them and charged at an amazing speed. "Die!"

Before she could strike, Ikkaku and Hisagi had grabbed her from behind and restrained her.

"Get off me! She's the enemy!"

They held her down, protecting Hanabi.

The spell was strong. They were even willing to attack the captain of Squad 2 for her sake.

"Get off!"

Putting on the helpless and weak act, Hanabi whimpered and covered her mouth with her hands as if about to cry. "Why would you do this? What have I ever done to you? Why are you trying to kill me, Miss Soi Fon?"

Byakuya rushed to her side. "Are you alright?"

Yumichika held her hand in his. "I'm here for you."

She cried out, "Oh, I'm so scared! Why would she try to hurt me like that?"

They comforted her.

Soi Fon kicked and fought back against the two holding her down. "Shut up, you witch!"

Hanabi tearfully buried her face in Byakuya's chest. "Wah! I'm so frightened! Please help me! Don't let her hurt me!"

Both Yumichika and Byakuya hugged her tightly around her slender shoulders and Hitsugaya hugged her around her middle, being the only place he could reach.

"Oh, you poor, poor dear..!"

Soi Fon snarled. Seeing this made her sick. "Snap out of it, you fools! She's only using you! She's one of Aizen's henchmen! Wake up!"

They weren't listening. In their minds, Hanabi could do no wrong and was so frail and weak. She needed them to take care of her because she was helpless without them. Nothing anybody said could change their minds, either. Hanabi was the only one they needed, the only one they loved and the only one they had to look out for.

"It's a lie! It's all a big lie!" Nanao came racing towards them as fast as she could. "She's been lying from the start! She's just using you!"

Hanabi glared at her.

She ignored it. "She's not what you think! It's all a big trick!"

"A lie about what?" Byakuya had to know.

"She's not even a Soul Reaper!"

"Not yet," Yumichika chuckled. "She hasn't been issued a uniform or a squad or any of that. Of course she's not-"

"No! I mean she's not- Argh! This is hopeless! Guys, she's an-"

"Angel? They know." Hanabi interrupted her before the truth could be told.

The men snuggled her.

"No! She's-"

In a split second, Hanabi had grabbed Yumichika's face, pulled him down and gave him a big passionate kiss on the lips.

Whatever words Nanao had spoken were lost the moment their lips made contact and his world spun like a whirlwind.

"Did you hear me?!"

Hanabi released Yumichika and he staggered about. "Huh? What? You say something?"

Nanao growled. "I can't believe this!"

"Believe what?" Hanabi asked innocently.

It was an excellent distraction. Now the other men wanted a taste of those lips and Yumichika was still in a world of his own.

"That's it!" She reached for her blade.

Hanabi screamed and hid her face in Byakuya's chest again. "I'm so scared! She's going to hurt me!"

Rage passed across Byakuya's face as he turned to the woman threatening his beloved. "I'll kill her before she gets close."

Nanao froze. "Wait… You would..?"

He would and he was. Byakuya unsheathed his sword.

"I'll take care of you." Yumichika held her hand in his and pulled her away. "Follow me, Hanabi. I'll keep you safe."

"No! Stop!" Nanao tried to follow, but Byakuya stepped in front, blocking her path. "Captain, please! It's a trick! She's not what you think! You're being controlled!"

"Shut up!" He raised his sword. "I won't let any harm come to the woman I love."

~*~*~

A distance away, Yumichika had led Hanabi to a safe location far from the others and their fight. Still holding onto her hand, he came to a stop and turned to her. "Are you alright? Do you need to catch your breath? Are you in any pain? What can I do for you?"

The perfect slave. She had everything she could ever need. She had men to protect her, to love her, to take care of her and her every desire. They would keep her safe. They would do anything for her. All she had to do was command it. Best of all, as long as she continued playing this helpless, innocent role, men would throw themselves at her feet. It was all working out perfectly.

"Oh, Yumichika…" She put on her best performance of a helpless little girl. "Why would they try to hurt me like this? What have I ever done to them?"

He knelt at her side. "They're just jealous. But don't worry. I'll protect you. I'll always keep you safe."

"Oh, thank you." She hugged him and he melted. "You're the only one I can trust, aren't you?"

"I'd like to think so… I mean, uh… What I meant to say was… I will never give you a reason not to trust me. I love you too much to do anything to- Ack!"

Hanabi jumped aside as something came out of nowhere and hit Yumichika in the side of the head. It looked like a PEZ dispenser in the shape of a white bunny.

"You're an idiot if you fall for something like that!"

Hanabi spun around. Two Soul Reapers were standing in front of her just a few feet away. It was Rukia and Ichigo.

"So… You're not a human, are you?"

Ichigo gripped his sword tightly. "I'm not falling for your tricks. Never again."

Rukia gave him a sideward glance. "Be careful, Ichigo. Remember, you're a Soul Reaper now. You're not immune to her powers anymore. She could-"

"I know." He extended his blade before him. "But I'm not as simple-minded as the others. I won't fall for it. She's going down!"

* * *

What kind of fight will take place? Will he fall for her, too? What's going on back with Byakuya? It's getting good now!

Please review! ^-^


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: **

All he had to do was keep his eyes off of her. If he could managed that, then he could win this fight and not fall under her spell. Easier said than done, though. How were you supposed to fight someone you can't look at? He had to find a way.

Ichigo lifted his sword off the ground and pointed it right at her.

Hanabi stared down the blade at him. She didn't look frightened at all. She took the whole thing as a joke.

Ichigo kept his eyes focused on the ground in front of him. He couldn't look at her. No matter what, he couldn't. He wasn't going to be controlled like the others. He fell for it once, but never again.

"Ichigo…" Her voice was beautiful. "Why so shy? Look at me."

"No."

"Hm? Why not?"

"You know why. Now that I'm a Soul Reaper, I can be controlled like the others. I won't let that happen."

"Aw…" she sighed. "But I thought we could have some fun together."

"Fat chance!" He raised his sword higher off the ground.

"And just how do you intent to fight me like that? You're not even looking at me. How will you know where I am and who you're stabbing?"

She was right, but he had known that from the start.

"Oh, I'll do it, alright."

"Be careful, Ichigo," Rukia warned. "Maybe you should let me handle-"

"No! I told you, I got this! Just leave her to me and stay out of the way!" He shut his eyes tight and charged in swinging his sword. It sliced through the air and made contact with the ground. He missed. He could hear her giggling and made a move in that direction. Once again he charged in and missed. His sword cut the air, but nothing else.

"You're missing! You're missing!" he could hear her sing.

"Shut up, damn it!" He spun around and cut where her head should have been.

Rukia yelped. "Watch it! You almost hit me!"

"Sorry…"

Rukia pointed. "She's right there!"

"Uh, hello? I can't see, remember?"

"Oh, right. Then just do as I tell you."

"Fine. Where is she?"

Rukia pointed again. "She's right there!"

"Where?!"

"Oh! Uh, left."

"Got it." Ichigo swung to the left.

"You missed her!"

Keeping his eyes shut, Ichigo spun around and shouted back at her. "This isn't working!"

"You're telling me. You suck."

"Hey, it's not my fault I can't see anything!"

"Yes, it is! It was your bright idea to shut your eyes in the first place!"

"Stop shouting at me!"

"You're the one who's yelling at _me_!"

This fight was going nowhere fast.

Just as Ichigo was getting ready to shout back, someone kicked him from behind. It was Yumichika.

"That's for hitting me!" He pulled out his zanpakuto. "And this is for trying to hurt my sweetheart!"

"Aw, for crying out loud!" Ichigo groaned. "When are you people going to wake up? It's a trick, you moron!"

"Who's a moron?"

This time, Ichigo opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was an army of love-crazed men lined up in a semi-circle. Each one of them was completely under her control and at her command. All she had to do was say the word and they'd attack and there wasn't a thing he could do to stop it.

Byakuya raised his sword. "If you so much as dare to strike her…"

"Come on, Byakuya! Not you, too!" Ichigo pointed in the direction he thought was where Hanabi stood. "She's freaking controlling you guys!"

They wouldn't hear it. They wanted to fight for her.

"For God's sake!" Ichigo roared. "She's a flippin' Arrancar!" He knew that would wake them up.

Surprisingly, it didn't. They just stood there, unresponsive.

"Didn't you hear me? I said that she's an Arrancar."

Byakuya looked him in the eye and said, "So?"

Rukia and Ichigo shared the same expression at this. They were both shocked. "What did you just say?"

"I said so?"

"So you don't care? Hello! She was sent here by Aizen!"

"So what?" he said again. "So what if she's an Arrancar?"

"It doesn't matter to us if she is or not," Ikkaku admitted.

"Who cares if she's an Arrancar?" asked Hisagi.

"She's the loveliest of them all," swooned another.

"I'd take her hand in marriage in a heartbeat," Ukitake said, blowing her a kiss.

Did they really understand what they were saying? They all just agreed that they couldn't care less what she was or who sent her. They were too in love to care.

"You see, Ichigo?" Hanabi's voice sang behind him. "There's no dealing with them now. They're too far along to care."

Ichigo jumped away, shutting his eyes again.

"Ichigo, Ichigo, Ichigo… Don't you get it? They're too far along to care anymore. The spell has gotten so powerful now that they couldn't care who or what I am. Even if I was evil, they'd follow me anywhere and do whatever I say."

_This is stupid! I can't fight her like this! She's right in front of me and I can't hit her! I have to open my eyes_. He would steal a quick peek. That's it. Just a peek. One quick peek. He'd look at her legs. That way he'd know where she was and could hit her without falling under her spell.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Ichigo opened his eyes and raised his gaze up. He saw her beautifully sculpted legs and white high heels. She was five feet away from him. So close. He gripped his sword in both hands and swung at her.

Her legs disappeared and reappeared on his other side. Keeping his eyes down, he swung at her again. She jumped over his sword and landed safely a few feet away.

"Nice try, Ichigo."

"Damn it!" he cursed and pointed his sword at her again. Just looking at her legs weren't enough. He had to look at her torso. He cautiously looked up just a little higher and stopped at her stomach. That was far enough. Now he had a good shot at her body.

He lunged.

She laughed and jumped aside. She made it look so easy. She was too fast for him. If he was going to have any luck in bringing her down, he had to speed up and fast.

"Ban-kai!"

Off to the side, Rukia stood rolling her eyes. Ichigo was as stubborn as ever. Why he wouldn't let her fight was beyond her, but he couldn't handle this alone. If Hanabi used her released form, then he would fall for anyone he saw. And how in the world was he supposed to fight someone he couldn't see? It was hopeless. _He_ was hopeless.

The smoke cleared and Ichigo appeared in his faster form, sword shrunken for easier movement. He was ready to run her through, fast as lightning.

But the same problem was still at hand. He still couldn't look at her. As fast as he was, if he looked at her even for an instant, he might not be able to bring himself to hurt her. Very slowly and carefully, he lifted his eyes to her stomach. Now that he had a view of her torso, he had a target to slash at. He quickly held his sword in both hands and took a step.

Equally as fast, Hanabi reached up and took hold of her kimono.

Ichigo stopped. Was she reaching for a weapon? But her sword was still at her hip.

The onlookers watched her curiously, waiting.

In one swift movement, Hanabi stripped off her top, revealing her bare chest for all to see. Her silky garment slid down her smooth shoulders, exposing everything above her hips.

Ichigo clasped a hand over his face, suppressing a massive nosebleed. His face turned beet red.

The men watching from not too far away barked and howled like horny dogs. They cheered and praised her for her beauty, thanking fate for such a wonderful sight.

"Animals!" Rukia groaned to herself.

Without thinking, Ichigo's eyes wondered up from her chest to her face and took in her smile. She was smirking at him, knowing that this would happen.

_Cheap trick, catching me off guard like that and showing off her body! I'm not that kind of man!_ Though he said it pretty loud in his head, that didn't change the fact that he was still looking at her. He just couldn't stop himself.

"What do you think, Ichigo?" Hanabi teased him a little bit with her beautiful body. "You like?"

He stuttered.

"Does Ichigo like?" She winked.

"Yeah-huh… Yeah, very much..!" Her spell was starting to take hold.

That is until Rukia clocked him from behind. "Snap out of it, you idiot!"

Ichigo dropped his sword and spun around, holding his head. "Ow! That hurt!"

"It was meant to, you moron! She was winning you over!"

"I coulda handled it!"

"Yeah, right!"

Hanabi placed a hand on her sword, muttering the command softly.

"I told you, I got this!" Ichigo roared.

Rukia scoffed. "Yeah, sure! Once again you needed me to come and save your sorry ass. You're hopeless without me!"

"Hopeless?!"

"You heard me! You always need me around to give you a pep talk. You can't do anything right! You need me around just to help you fight!"

"Since when?!"

"Oh, let's see… There was that time when you were too depressed to even fight a little Hollow in the real world. You needed me to train you. You needed me to-"

"Ok, fine!" Ichigo's face was still red, but this time it was from rage. "Just shut up and let me handle this."

"There you go again!" She reached for her own sword. "Let me handle this one, ok? I'd get it done faster."

"Hey, aren't you the one always telling me to man up and fight on my own?"

"That's different! This time, it's about being smart in battle. She can easily control you, being a man and all. It's about time you stepped aside and let the woman handle it. We can fight just as well as the next man. And in this fight, we can actually fight even better!"

"You're one of those damn feminists, aren't you?"

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"I told you, I'll handle it. Just leave me alone."

"You stay out of it!"

"You can't take her on by yourself, stupid!"

Rukia pushed him back. "You think I'm weak?! Is that it?"

He was losing his temper fast. "You know what I think?! I think-" Ichigo blinked and his eyes sparkled as he looked into hers. "I think I love you!"

"Huh?!"

Looking past him, she could see Hanabi holding up her bow aiming straight at Ichigo's back.

_That little..!_

Ichigo jumped forward and jumped on her. "I love you! Oh, Rukia, I love you! I love you so much!"

She kicked him in the head. "Come on! I get enough of this from Kon, I don't need it from you, too! Wake up, Ichigo! Wake up and snap out of it!"

He tried to kiss her and she held him down. "I said stop it!"

"But I love you!"

This was horrible. Now Ichigo was in love with her the same way he had fallen for Uryu. _If only he had let me fight when I said, none of this would be happening! I'm immune to her powers, so I can fight_. Rukia reached for her sword, but Ichigo was hugging her tightly, pinning her arms to her side. "Get off me, Ichigo! Let go!"

"Never!" He nuzzled his face into her body. "I love you so much!"

"I have to fight her, Ichigo!"

He held her back. "No way! You might get hurt. I won't allow it!"

She thrashed about in his arms. "Let me go!"

"I love you, Rukia! Kiss me!" He puckered his lips.

"No! Get away!" She wiggled about, trying to escape his wet lips.

"Kiss me! Kiss me! Oh, my beautiful, Rukia! I love you! Kiss me!"

"NO!"

"Please kiss me!"

Rukia fought against him, but her movements slowed once she spotted someone approaching them. Pulling her kimono back up, Hanabi raised her sword, pointing it at Ichigo's back. She was going to run him through! Rukia thrashed around harder. "Ichigo! Look out! You have to get off me!"

He shook his head, that same stupid smile on his face.

"Ichigo, you have to let go and move! She's going to kill you!"

"Then I'll die happy."

"Ichigo, please!" She was screaming and pleading with him to move, but he wouldn't. "Ichigo!"

Hanabi brought her sword down. Rukia shut her eyes.

There was a clang as metal met metal. Rukia looked up and saw Soi Fon standing between the two parties, her zanpakuto clashing with Hanabi's.

"Captain Soi Fon."

She called over her shoulder at them. "Rukia, I'll finish her myself. You take that idiot with you and run."

"But I can fight, too!"

"I know you can, but not like that. He's clinging to you and you two will only get in the way like that. Now go!"

Rukia still couldn't move. Ichigo still had her in a vise grip. "Ichigo, get off of me!"

Nanao bulldozed into them and carried them away. "He's as stubborn as ever, Rukia. There's no reasoning with him."

"Thank you-"

"Don't thank me yet. We still have to take her down."

Hanabi and Soi Fon were still facing each other, their blades locked together. But Hanabi wasn't alone. She still had an army to fight for her. Smiling smugly, she called out to the crowd. "Ow! She's hurting me!"

Soi Fon's eyes widened as she heard a stampede of men rushing towards her. They were coming to protect Hanabi. Soi Fon jumped back. Kira jumped through the air and clashed blades with her. He was a lot stronger than she had anticipated. He managed to push her back and moved in for the kill. With lightning speed, Soi Fon flashed away and tried to strike Hanabi again.

This time, her own squad members stopped her. The men from Squad 2 surrounded her and unsheathed their swords. "Men, stand down! That's a direct order from your captain!"

They didn't obey. They all jumped her at once. Why did she have to train them so hard? Even with her speed, Soi Fon couldn't get away from them. Worst of all, they had her greatly outnumbered. She couldn't fight all of them.

Nanao took up her own sword and charged in. It was time for the women to fight for a change. They were just as tough as men, after all. Too bad they outnumbered them. There were more men than women at the Soul Society. Nanao doubted that she could take Hanabi down by herself, but she had to try.

Hisagi cut her off and so did her own captain. They brought their blades down over her head, but she blocked them with her own blade. "Damn it! I can't do anything like this!"

"Captain!"

"I'll protect you, Hanabi!"

"Please stop!"

The sound of desperate women's screams sounded in every direction as their captains charged in to defend their lover. It was total chaos. And Hanabi stood in the middle of it all, smiling to herself. Everything was going her way. Everything was working out in her favor. She was winning.

Rukia was still trying to knock some sense into Ichigo, who was still trying to kiss her. "Ichigo, can't you see what's going on here?"

He rubbed his face on her chest, giggling.

"We have to fight, Ichigo! You have to let me take part! Please, just let me go!"

He wouldn't listen. The hugging never stopped.

"Fine! I'll do it my way!" Rukia wriggled her left arm free and raised her hand over Ichigo's head. Her palm was facing Hanabi. "Hado 33, Sokatsui!"

A burst of blue energy flew from her hand and hurled toward Hanabi. Without looking up, she cast it aside with a flick of her wrist. It failed. Hanabi turned her head to look at the one who fired it. "Did you really think that was going to stop me?"

Instead of letting it provoke her, Rukia fired another shot at her head.

This time, she did nothing to stop it. She let someone else do it for her.

Byakuya flashed stepped in front of Hanabi and threw the blast off course. Then he held his sword in his hand and charged.

_My own brother wants to kill me?! _Rukia had no time to react and with Ichigo still hugging her, she was totally helpless.

Suddenly, Ichigo's eyes returned to normal and he scooped Rukia up in his arms and threw her out of the way. She skidded across the dirt and landed out of Byakuya's reach.

"Stupid! Why didn't you move?!"

Rukia sat up and yelled back at him. "Hello! You were the one who wouldn't let go of me! And why'd you have to throw me like that?! Why couldn't you have just carried me?!"

"Did I look like I had that kind of time?!"

"You had enough time to pick me up! There was nothing stopping you from doing it a bit more gently!"

"I just saved your butt, Rukia! How about a thank-you?!"

"Love from above, I attack-!"

"Not now, Ikkaku!" Ichigo threw him aside like a rag doll.

Byakuya followed after Rukia, trying to finish the job. She took up her sword and got ready to defend herself. Ichigo moved to help, but she yelled at him. "Just go! I'll be fine! Take down Hanabi!"

He nodded and picked up his sword. "She's mine!"

Hanabi stood in the middle of the battle field, looking somewhat bored. This fight was only entertainment for her. Why did she have to fight? They would do the work for her. All she had to do was stand there and look good.

The sound of swords clashing around her was deafening. The shouts and screams echoed around her, coming from all directions. A stray attack crashed a few yards from where she stood, sending a cloud of dirt into the air, blinding her for a moment. When it cleared, she looked up and saw a black blade soaring towards her chest. Ichigo was on the other side of it.

Shutting his eyes at the last second to avoid looking at her face, he struck.

* * *

I think the next one will be the last. Chapter 10 up soon!

Please review! ^-^


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10:**

He felt a moment of resistance as his blade pierced through flesh. He had done it. He finally got her. He could hear blood splatter on the ground at his feet. Slowly, he opened his eyes. Once he did, his gaze found a pair of black-clad legs standing before him, soaked with blood. But this was perplexing. Hanabi wasn't issued a Soul Reaper uniform yet. She was still wearing her usual colorful kimono. Suddenly feeling sick, Ichigo looked up into the face of the one he stabbed. Blood dripped from the wound and his mouth, his turquoise eyes staring straight ahead.

"To… Toshiro…"

Fresh blood gushed from the wound under his captain's jacket, Ichigo's sword still sticking out just below his collar bone. He had stepped in front of Hanabi at the last second, taking the hit to protect her. It wasn't a fatal wound, but he was losing a lot of blood. If it didn't stop soon, he would bleed to death.

Ichigo wrenched the sword from Hitsugaya's body, sending his blood splattering across the ground. Without the blade to hold him up, Hitsugaya fell to his knees and onto the ground. "Toshiro! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to! I was trying to-"

Hitsugaya turned his head to look at the one standing unharmed behind him. "Are you ok?"

Hanabi smiled. "Thank you, Toshiro. I'm fine thanks to you."

Smiling, Hitsugaya fell face-first into the blood-soaked ground. He had protected the one he loved at the cost of himself.

A distance away, Rangiku stood transfixed at the sight of her captain lying in a pool of his own blood. Her jaw dropped. "Captain…" Her lips trembled. "Oh, Captain..!"

Ichigo could only watch. What was he to do? He still had a fight to finish, but Hitsugaya was hurt bad. But he didn't have any healing skills so what could he do to help him? Not only that, but he was also beating himself up over his mistake. If only he had been looking. But if he had done that, then she could have controlled him like the others and would have been turned into _this_. But in not looking at her, _this_ happened. Maybe he should have listened to Rukia on this one. He hated to admit it, but she was right most of the time when it came to things such as this.

A sound distracted him. It was laughter. Someone was laughing. Without even looking, he knew who it was. "Hanabi…"

Her laughter faded away and he could feel her gaze on his back. "Yes?"

"How..?"

"How what?"

"How could you…" He clenched his fists. "How could you just stand there and laugh like that? He's you're love-slave, isn't he?"

"And?"

His rage was building. "Don't you even care?" His voice was beginning to raise as well. "He's hurt and you don't even care?! Don't you feel anything for him or what he did for you?"

"And by that you mean..?"

He pointed at Hitsugaya lying on the ground. "He just took the hit for you! If that was a fatal blow, he would have died just now! He's hurt and you don't care at all, do you?! If he dies, would you even care? Would you feel for him?"

"I'm grateful that he saved me, but that's his job. I expected him to do it."

"Is that all he is to you- just a tool? Is he just a tool for you to use and then cast aside when it's no longer of use?"

A short pause and then she answered in one word. "Yes."

As hard as it was, Ichigo forced himself not to look at her. He wanted so much to glare at her. It would feel so good if only he could show her his eyes so that she could see exactly what he was feeling at that moment. He thought he was angry before, but that was nothing compared to right now.

"You're right, Ichigo. I don't care about him. Not at all, really. But it doesn't matter. Even if I were to treat him like dirt, he'd still throw himself in front of your sword. If I were cruel and heartless to any of them, it wouldn't change anything. They'd do anything for me. They love me no matter what. Men just can't resist a helpless, beautiful woman. Hitsugaya is no different. He's a powerful and useful guy to have around, but there are dozens just as strong under my command now. He is expendable. He is nothing more than a tool to me. I'll use him as I see fit and throw him away once I'm done. If he is of no further use to me, I'll get rid of him. It doesn't matter. I have plenty more men to choose from. I can have anyone I want. He means nothing to me." Her voice became very cold. "He served his purpose. That's all he is to me. Just a tool and a bodyguard. Nothing more than that. I have plenty others. I don't need him. As long as he is able to serve me, I'll keep him around. Once he can't do that, I'm done with him. I couldn't care less if he lives or dies."

He could feel his blood boiling in his veins. He felt like his skin was going to melt off his bones. He was furious. "I see… You don't care… Not at all."

"Right."

"Hanabi…" he hissed through his teeth. "You're a cruel, cold and heartless person…"

"Why, thank you." Her voice took on the likeness of a sadistic child.

"That wasn't a complement." Ichigo grasped the handle of his sword. "Even Hitsugaya's cold, but at least he has a good heart! You can't just use people like that! They have lives and feelings, too!"

"What do I care? To me, they're just tools. I'm only using them."

"Using people… Just like him." Ichigo lowered his eyes. "You're so much like him. You're just like Aizen."

She laughed. "That's a complement. I'm here to impress him. To hear that we are so similar is a complement. Thank you."

Facing the ground, Ichigo kept his voice as calm as possible, but it was still shaking. "Shut up."

"Hm? What was that?" she asked sweetly.

"I said shut up!" Ichigo unleashed his rage and pounced. Fueled but nothing but white-hot rage and a thirst for revenge, Ichigo took up his sword and got ready to sink it into her chest.

She side-stepped and pulled out her own sword, slicing open his chest as he came soaring by. As he turned in the air, she stabbed him in the gut, spilling blood everywhere. "Now this is more like it. I'm having fun!"

~*~*~

"Please stop it, Byakuya! It's me!" Rukia screamed to her older brother. "It's me, Rukia! Don't you know me? Please stop this! You don't want to-"

"Oh, yes, I do!" He slashed at her again. "You're an enemy of my beloved. Sister or not, you're dead to me now. I'll teach you to threaten Hanabi!"

Looking around, Rukia could see that all the other women were having trouble, too. Each one of them was pinned up against a captain or a teammate. Nanao was fighting her own captain as well as Hisagi. Soi Fon was going up against her own squad, including Kira and Kenpachi. Now she was stuck fighting her own brother. It was horrible.

_So this is Hanabi's plan, is it? _Rukia thought. _Use them to fight for you and force them to fight their loved ones while you watch? Then you can either take them back to Hueco Mundo with you or let them fight to the death and die here. You make me sick! _She narrowly avoided Byakuya's blade for a millionth time. She couldn't hope to fight him and win. Besides, she knew what that would take… She would have to kill him.

With a loud battle cry, it had become a tag team. Renji had appeared at Byakuya's side and was ready to fight and bring Rukia down, too.

"I can't do this..!"

_~*~*~_

_It was worth it. As long as she's safe_... Hitsugaya thought, bleeding out of his open wound. _I protected her. She's safe. I did my job_. He had heard every word she had said; everything she had told Ichigo, but none of that mattered to him. So what if she didn't love him? So what if the feeling wasn't mutual? Big deal. He still loved her. That's all that mattered. _I did it. I saved her. I protected the one I love. Even now, I still love her. I always have… If I die here, that's just fine with me_…

_But, Captain, you haven't even met her yet_. He could hear Rangiku's voice echo in his head.

That's right. He hadn't loved her at first. In fact, he didn't even trust her. What had changed?

_Sing, Amourdoki_…

Oh, yes, that's right. Her spell. She had cast her spell upon him in the office. He was forced into this feeling of love. He was being controlled like the others. But he still didn't care. Even if it was fake love, he was in love and it felt so good.

_I don't want another repeat of what happened with Aizen. I won't let Momo get hurt again!_

Oh, yeah. Momo… He had promised to protect her no matter what, too. And that promise was from long ago. Much longer than this one to Hanabi. Momo was his dear friend after all. But he cared for Hanabi, too.

_Little Shi… I mean, Captain Hitsugaya… When you find Captain Aizen… Are you… Are you going to kill him? _

Momo had asked him that when he was in the World of the Living. Even after all this, after everything he had done to her and everyone else, she was still in love with him. She was in love with Aizen…

… Just as he was with Hanabi.

It hit him and it hit him hard. He was under a similar spell as Momo. He was being manipulated by Hanabi and Aizen was still manipulating Momo. They were both being fools.

He wasn't as strong as he thought. He had fallen for the trick, the very trick he had sworn not to fall for. He was under her control, fighting his own people. He was being used. If this continued, he might end up fighting Momo just as she had done to him. For all he knew, Hanabi was plotting it at that very moment.

Hanabi was using him. He was fighting the wrong people. He was being controlled. He was protecting the enemy. He was injured because of her. Aizen was enemy number one and he had hurt Momo and fooled everyone. Hanabi worked for Aizen.

And with that, Hitsugaya woke up.

His turquoise eyes narrowed and he grabbed his sword. "I'll kill her..!"

~*~*~

Ichigo was sent careening down to the ground smashing face-first into the ground. Before he could get up, Hanabi kicked him again, slicing his cheek open with her heel.

"Why don't you look at me, Ichigo?"

He heard her coming from behind and felt her heel sink into his spine.

"How can you fight what you can't see? Turn around and look at me!" She sounded like a little girl playing hide-and-seek. "Come on, Ichigo. Take a little peek. It won't kill you… But I might!"

As he turned, her heel found his chest again and she kicked him into a pile of sharp rocks. Shakily, he stood up, his body torn up pretty bad. He coughed and blood shot out of his mouth and onto the ground at his feet. She grabbed his neck and threw him to the ground.

He stuck his hand out to break the fall. "I won't lose to you..! No matter what, I won't lose!"

"But you already have!" Her heel made contact with him again. "Just imagine how handsomely Aizen will reward me for your head…"

She had an animal-like appetite for killing, even if it was not by her own hand. She felt no need to justify or defend her behavior. Feeling, mood, chance… those were the factors that caused her to do the things she did, taking for herself and then lose interest just as quickly. And in the end, she felt no responsibility for her crimes. But it was more than that. She was also an attention-seeker. Her zanpakuto was proof enough of that. Having hundreds of lovers at her side all the time. She controlled people with love. She also did these things for one person other than herself: Aizen. She was doing this for him. She was going to take over the Soul Society for him, thus earning his acceptance; maybe even his love. For all they knew, she was doing this to win him over.

It was clear to him now. "So that's it, huh? All of this is for Aizen, right? Well, guess what? He doesn't care about you at all. I met the guy and I can tell you one thing… To him, you're nothing more than a tool. He'll only use you and toss you aside the moment he's done with you!"

Hanabi spun around and kicked him in the back of the head and sent him into the ground. "You know nothing…" Her heel sunk deep into his back. "You sound just like him. You sound just like Gin… That's just what he told me before I left…"

_~*~*~_

_She had only looked down for a moment to back up her belongings. There weren't many. As soon as she looked up, she found herself face to face with Gin. He was still smiling that same smile at her. That was something they both had in common. They both smiled a lot, especially when they were hiding something. Hanabi always had mixed feelings about him. She knew he couldn't be trusted but she also considered him an alley and Aizen's closest friend. Surely Aizen wouldn't let him hang around if he couldn't be trusted at all._

_Alone in her spacious marble room, Gin continued to stare at her as if expecting her to speak first. He didn't give her the chance, though. After a short staring contest, he spoke up. _

"_You realize, of course, that Aizen doesn't care about you at all, don't you?"_

_Hanabi stopped packing and straightened up. "What are you talking about?"_

"_It's obvious that he's just using you as a tool just like all the others. You mean nothing to him."_

_She couldn't believe her ears. Aizen was the one who took her in out of the kindness of his heart. He gave her a place to stay and food to eat. This was her home and Aizen was the one who gave it to her. How could someone like that not care about her in the slightest as Gin was suggesting? "That's not true, Gin! Take that back!"_

_He leaned down into her face. "Why? You know I'm right. He's just going to use you until you're of no further use to him. Whether you live or die has no meaning to him. He's only keeping you around because you're useful to him. But once that's over, he'll cast you aside. He doesn't even expect you to make it back here. Neither do I , for that matter."_

_The ground shook beneath her feet, moved by her rage. There was no way Aizen saw her that way. She was no tool. She was useful and he kept her around because he cared about her. She was powerful and intelligent, and nothing and no one topped her beauty. How could she be so easily replaced?_

"_You have a unique talent. You're just like cupid." Gin's smile seemed somewhat genuine this time. "But let's face it. You mean nothing to him. You're just a tool to keep at his side until you're of use. Your position here is more or less conditional. If a tool is broken or of no further use to him, you're done. That's fact. I'm not trying to be mean or anything, but that's how it goes. Everyone here has some use to him. That's why he keeps us around."_

"_And you, Gin?"_

_He smiled deeply at her. "I mean more than that to him. We share the same views. We have a lot more in common than you."_

"_Sounds to me like you're just kidding yourself. Aren't you a tool, too?"_

_He straightened up, still smiling. "I know my place and my fate. But do you know yours?" _

_~*~*~_

"You're a fool, Ichigo! And you sound just like him!" She took Ichigo's sword in her hand and plunged it down, piercing his left hand. He cried out in pain, but knew better than to move. "Saying such things about things you don't even know!"

His vision became blurry and he tried to ignore the sharp in his hand. "I never thought I'd say this, but… I side with Gin on this one."

She took her own sword and stabbed him in the back, pinning him down. He coughed up blood and gagged. "You're the fool! Do you really think that I'm just doing this to win him over? He's too smart for that! He's too smart to even fall for my tricks! That's why I can't effect him."

Blood dripping down his chin, Ichigo asked, "Then how did you manage to trick everyone here? Toshiro's a genius and I'm pretty sure that the Head Captain's smart enough to see through deception. Byakuya, too. How'd you manage to fool them?"

She stepped on his head and forced his face into the ground. "The release form can effect any man, regardless of their will. It was simple enough. But Toshiro was a bit of a pain. He's so young and intelligent… I had to go all out in order to effect him. He just wouldn't fall for me without a little push." She let out a sigh. "But Lord Aizen knows too much about my power already. Plus, he could always use his power to fool _me_. Then when I think I shot him with my arrow, he could be standing behind me with a sword of his own and cut my throat. I'm not stupid. I know never to underestimate him."

Ichigo pulled his head up off the ground a little to speak. "Then why are you doing this? If what you're saying is true and that I don't have the whole story right, then why are you doing all this?"

"Yes, I am doing this for him, but I'm also doing it for myself."

"Personal gain, huh?"

She pulled her sword out of Ichigo's back and held it over his head. "I'm doing this because it's fun. Plus…" She leaned her head down to him and whispered, "… do you have any idea what awaits me when I return?"

He spoke through a mouth of dirt and blood. "No."

She lifted herself up and shouted it down to him. "Everything!" She sounded like a commander giving a pep-speech to her troops. "I'll have everything I could ever want! Before I was just admired for my looks, but now I'll be recognized for my talents!" She increased pressure on his head, pushing him further into the ground. "When I return to Hueco Mundo, I'll be welcomed back like a queen! Before, Aizen treated me like a princess, now I'll be treated like a goddess! I'll be a goddess in his eyes from this moment on! He'll realize that I have the power! More power than he ever gave me credit for. His throne will become mine and I'll sit upon it from now on. And he'll be the one sitting on the arm at my right! And Gin… Oh, Gin will be my own personal footstool! From now on, they serve _me_!"

She lifted her foot off Ichigo only for a second to kick him in the face. Hanabi grabbed a fistful of his hair and pulled him up to her eye-level. Ichigo closed his eyes, refusing to look at her.

"And it all starts here…" she whispered in his face. He could feel her hot breath on his cheek, cooling the blood running down his face making him shiver.

She threw him to the ground, his body twisting away from the sword still sticking out of his hand, tearing the skin. He grimaced in pain. Ichigo lay in a pool of his own blood, groaning in agony. She was far stronger than he had thought. She didn't just make people fall in love; she was a fighter, and a strong one at that.

It became clear to him at that moment that he just couldn't win. He couldn't beat her. He had never given up before and he wasn't going to now, but he just couldn't do it. It hurt to move, he could barely see, he had lost so much blood, leaving him feeling dizzy and weak. He had never faced an opponent he couldn't see before. He couldn't defeat her alone. He needed help.

Hanabi ripped the sword from Ichigo's hand and cast it aside. Then she took up her own. Ichigo could feel her gaze on his back.

"It's over, Ichigo. If only you had become my slave, you wouldn't have had to die." She still had the voice of a sadistic child. Sweet and angelic, but cold and icy. "You've lost. Every single one of you…"

Her once beautiful voice suddenly became a gargle of words. She slowly looked down at the blade protruding from the center of her chest. Carefully, Hanabi turned her head to look over her shoulder at the owner of the weapon.

"You…" She spoke the word through bloody lips.

The Soul Reaper had stabbed through Hanabi's back and out her chest. Her long ginger locks curtaining her narrow features. Her light blue eyes met Hanabi's emerald ones.

"Rangiku…"

Her eyes never left hers and kept a firm grip on her blade with both hands. Her blue orbs were filled with, not hatred, but sorrow. "It's sad…" she whispered into her ear. "I actually thought that we could be friends."

Even with a sword in her chest, Hanabi somehow managed a smile. "I have to say… I never expected you to be the one to bring me down…"

Her eyes didn't waver. They still held onto hers as she spoke. "Nobody hurts my captain."

And with that remark, Rangiku gave her zanpakuto a twist and ripped it out through Hanabi's back. A fresh gush of blood poured out through her wound, soaking her kimono. With a shallow gasp, Hanabi fell to her knees and from there toppled over backwards onto the cold ground. Rangiku stood over her fallen body, her blade still red with her blood. It dripped from its point and gathered to form a red pool by her feet.

Hanabi lay motionless on her back, staring up at the sky. She slowly turned her head to the right. Ichigo followed her gaze to the zanpakuto still clutched in her hand. The cause of all this disorder and chaos now lay useless in her hand.

Ichigo staggered to his feet and shuffled over to her, hand clasped over his wounds. He stood on Hanabi's right and Rangiku on her left, eyes still focused on the enemy.

It was very faint, but Ichigo could hear her utter her final words.

"… Aizen…"

It sounded like a whisper on the wind.

A smile, her last smile, played across her bloody lips as her emerald eyes began to darken.

"… I guess… you were right…"

More blood dribbled down her chin and onto the ground. Though she was staring at her sword, Ichigo knew that she was looking beyond that, to a scene he could not behold. She tightened her grip on the hilt and gave her last lament.

"Without… this blade… I am nothing more… than a pretty face…"

Hanabi's chest convulsed one final time and then lay still in a pool of blood. Her rein over the Soul Society was now over. She was defeated.

Rangiku cast her eyes away with a sigh. "It's over."

She was right. With Hanabi now gone, her spell was broken and all the love-slaved men were free. All at once, their battles stopped and they looked around in confusion.

With his blade held high over Rukia's head, Byakuya spoke coolly. "Feel honored that you died at the hand of my… Rukia?" He blinked and looked into the eyes of the girl he held down. "What… What am I doing? Are you alright?" He helped her up.

Rukia let out a long sigh of relief and allowed herself to be pulled up by his hand. "I'm ok."

Renji was scanning the battle field with his eyes. "So… What the hell just happened?"

"Don't you remember anything, Renji?" she asked.

He shrugged. "Well, I know that we were fighting but I can't remember why."

A smile spread across her face. "He did it. That idiot won."

Ichigo could finally look upon her face without fear. She was pretty, but not really much else. She was so misleading. She had fooled everyone. Even he had fallen for her tricks.

"You alright?" The question came from Rangiku.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Then let's go." She walked away without another word.

Ichigo took one final look at Hanabi and put away his sword. "See ya, beautiful."

~*~*~

"You wanted to see me, Captain?" Rangiku poked her head into the office.

Hitsugaya stood by the window looking out at the setting sun.

Things had gone back to normal ever since the battle had ended. Hanabi was gone and the men were freed. They had cleaned out her room and confiscated all her belongings. Most of the men were in mourning, not for the loss of Hanabi, but for their empty wallets. For them, the worst part was not being able to return any of her gifts for cash. Renji had actually got down on his knees and begged them to let him keep the gifts he had given to Hanabi so that he could sell them for the money he spent. He wasn't granted this.

Most of the men were silent after the battle, mostly due to their humiliation of being so easily tricked and turned into love-struck fools. Byakuya wouldn't come out of his room. But when Rukia showed up to speak with him, she found her brother staring intently at the photo of her departed older sister. She thought it best to leave him alone after that. Yumichika and Ikkaku hadn't changed much as a result of what had happened to them. Ikkaku went on like the whole thing never happened while Yumichika bragged about how he had gotten plenty of kisses from Hanabi. He had hoped that all the dates and make-out sessions he had with her would put aside any further belief that he was gay. Obviously he was not, especially if he had gotten more kisses than Ikkaku from the same woman.

Ichigo had returned home for the time being. He still couldn't look Uryu in the eye and the two avoided each other completely. So really, nothing had changed between them. However, when Rukia had showed up at his window and greeted him in a very Hanabi-like tone, Ichigo instinctively hid his face under the covers. When he finally came out, he shouted at her to never do that again and that it wasn't funny. To her it was but mostly because of the look on his face. She knew that it was red from embarrassment more than it was from rage. She thought it was cute.

Hitsugaya turned and looked at Rangiku.

"How's your arm?" she asked.

He glanced down at the bandages covering his left side. "Fine. Unohana said that I wouldn't have full use of my left arm for a few more days. Can't be helped. It doesn't hurt as much anymore."

"That's good." She didn't want to admit it, but she was worried about him. When she saw him take the hit for Hanabi, she felt sick to her stomach. She knew she wouldn't lose him so easily like that, but the possibility was always there. "What did you call me in here for anyway?"

He looked back out the window. "Why…" He trailed off. He was unsure how to phrase it. "You took her down."

Rangiku stared at his back.

"You did what no one else could."

"I had to, sir. You know that. It was my duty."

"I know. But…" His eyes floated back down. "I heard what you said."

"Hm?" She blinked, not knowing what he meant.

"Back with Hanabi, when you stabbed her."

_Nobody hurts my captain._

"Oh, that."

"What you said… I'm not asking you if you really meant it. I know the answer to that. I just want to know why you said it."

"Because I was taught that it's a lieutenant's duty to protect her captain no matter what. I was doing my job."

He still didn't look at her. "But you were specific. You said 'she', didn't you? Were you talking about yourself or all others in your position?"

"Uh…"

"Never mind. Forget I asked." He returned his gaze to the sky. "Thank you."

The quiet words made her jump. He never thanked her before. Even if he had, it was never this clear before. She felt the need to say something, but no words came to mind. Not even 'you're welcome' were sufficient enough in this situation.

But he still didn't turn around. "Sir, are you sure you're alright?"

Finally, he spoke. "I was right."

"Huh?"

"I was right all along. I was right about Hanabi the same way I was right about Aizen, and still no one believed me." He continued to look out the window, Rangiku's eyes fixed on his back. "If only someone had listened to me in the first place…"

Rangiku couldn't help but feel a little guilty herself. She had been the one who told him that she was harmless and that everything was going to be ok. She had been fooled, too. She even wanted to be friends with her, a fact that made her sick to her stomach even now. She should have trusted her captain's judgments more. He had been right all along.

"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you, Captain."

"It's not your fault. She had everyone fooled. Even me for a time."

No one spoke.

Then Rangiku looked at the pile of papers on the desk and sighed heavily. "I suppose all these forms are for the incident, correct? Even in death, she makes work for us. I'll get started on these, I guess."

"That's ok. You don't have to."

She paused and looked up at him. "Excuse me?"

"I'll take care of it."

With her hands still outstretched towards her stack, she asked, "What do you mean, sir?"

Hitsugaya turned his head slightly to one side to glance back at her. "I'll do it for you. Go have a drink."

Her jaw dropped. "Who are you and what have you done with my captain?"

His eyes narrowed. "Very funny. I mean it. I'll take care of it. I need something to work on anyway. Go have some fun."

It became clear to her at that point. He was doing this for her. He was repaying her with a kind deed. He truly was grateful to her for bringing down Hanabi and for the thing she had said about him. That simple sentence, 'nobody hurts my captain', must have meant so much to him. This was his gift to her, but she knew that the offer wouldn't last long.

So she took it.

"Thank you so much, Captain!"

He nodded and pulled the stack of papers towards his side of the desk.

"But you know, sir…" Her voice had become slightly more serious, though not by much. "You were right all along. You saw through her deception and this is your second time being right and proving everyone else wrong. I know you've been right before about so many other things, but you know what I mean. You should be happy. I know when I'm right about something, I just have to celebrate. Why don't you? Treat yourself to something nice."

He lowered his gaze. "Because there's nothing to celebrate."

Her smile went away. Then she had a thought. "But wasn't her plan to weaken the Soul Society? It was a fail. She didn't win and that attack only made us stronger."

"I suppose…"

She smiled and gave his head one single pat, which he allowed for once. "I'll buy you something nice." She turned and started toward the door, then stopped. "Oh, and by the way… I've known you long enough to know how you feel about certain things. I know inside you are happy that you were right. It wouldn't hurt to let that out once in a while."

By the time he had looked up, she was long gone.

The clock on the wall ticked slowly. He looked left, then right. Then Hitsugaya let out a breath. Maybe she was right for a change. He did want to express his feelings and now that everyone was gone from his sight, he was free to do so. So after a moment, Hitsugaya jumped onto his chair and let it all out.

"I was right! I was right all along! Who's the child now, huh?! Who's the child now?! I had you adults pegged! 'He's a child! He doesn't know any better. What does he know?' HA! I was right all along, you idiots! I was right, right, right! Show me a little more respect! I won where you lost! And you know what else? She needed to go all out in order to effect me at all and you adults went as soft as a marshmallow in a second! Not only that, but I also broke her spell on my own and you guys didn't! I rule! I'm awesome! And you all suck! Gonna listen to me from now on, huh?! I was right! I was right! I WAS RIGHT!"

Just as quickly as he had let himself loose, he sat right back down in his chair and grabbed his pen. He had regained his composure and started filling out paperwork as if nothing had happened.

* * *

So that's what he does behind closed doors…

Hanabi is gone, thank God! She deserved it after what she said about Shiro-chan!

THE END!

I hope you liked it. I wanted it to go a little longer, but I decided to keep it at ten chapters.

It's finally over! So tell me what you think.

Thanks for reading and please review!

Thanks! ^-^


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